


Path to Ascension

by Lord_Bob



Category: Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-17 13:53:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29718165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lord_Bob/pseuds/Lord_Bob
Summary: An old tale speaks of a dangerous enemy hidden deep within the forests of the Mushroom Kingdom.  When these tales become reality, it’s up to Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach to stop a magical threat from obtaining the ultimate power.  Along the way they meet up with friend and foe alike, each looking to get a cut of the action in their own ways.  Will the Mario brothers put a stop to the evil they face, or have they finally met their match?
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

In the outskirts of the Mushroom Kingdom, there is a secluded forest that many Toads warn their children of. Stories of this forest vary, with some saying it is haunted, and will place a curse on anyone who enters. Others say that it is patrolled by a vicious monster that will attack any creature it sees. The truth of the forest has long since been forgotten by all but the most dedicated historians, yet the stories all make one thing clear; do not set foot in the forest.

  
  


These stories are largely only told within the Mushroom Kingdom itself, and those who live outside of the Kingdom seldom hear of these tales. One day, Luigi was out for a morning walk, when he stumbled upon the secluded forest, and soon found himself lost.

  
  


“Where am I? Hello? Is anyone there?” Luigi called out, scared as he wandered deeper into the woods.

  
  


As Luigi continued into the woods, less and less light passed through the treetops. Soon, Luigi found it near impossible to tell where he came from, or where he was going.

  
  


“Why do I always end up in these scary places alone? I need to stick with Mario more often. Hey, wait a minute. Is that...”

  
  


Luigi spotted a clearing where light shone through the treetops. Upon arriving at the clearing, he found what appeared to be a small tower. It was constructed of gray bricks, and lacked any windows. Luigi slowly approached the tower, cautious of anything that might emerge from it. Before he could reach the tower, he bumped into an invisible wall.

  
  


“Hey, what's this?” he said as he felt around the barrier, “There's some kind of force field surrounding the tower.”

  
  


Luigi searched around the tower to try to find an opening, but the barrier completely encased the tower. In front of the tower's door, however, Luigi found a stone pedestal with a round hole in the top.

  
  


“Oh I know what's going on here! There's something around here that fits into that hole.”

  
  


Luigi searched the area around the tower, looking for anything that might fit into the pedestal. He thoroughly searched the area around the tower, and stumbled across a small glowing orb, partially buried underneath a bush.

  
  


“Bingo! This has to be the key.”

  
  


Luigi picked up the orb, brushed off the dirt, and placed it into the pedestal. The pedestal began to glow, and the barrier around the tower faded.

  
  


“Alright! Now I can-”

  
  


Immediately after the force field broke, a loud rumble could be heard inside the tower. Then, the tower's doors swung open, breaking off their old hinges, revealing a cloaked figure inside.

  
  


“Ahh!” Luigi screamed as he ran away, and dove behind a nearby bush.

  
  


A pale-skinned man emerged from the tower, and dropped his cloak behind his head. He pushed his long, dark, and messy hair behind his head. He levitated above the ground, his feet barely visible from underneath his tattered, maroon robe with its green patterns.

  
  


“I don't know what fool released me from my prison, but I suppose it doesn't matter.” he scoffed in a loud, echoing voice, “I've been waiting for this moment for a hundred years. First things first, I have to take back what is rightfully mine.”

  
  


The magical figure flew into the forest, as Luigi watched, frozen in horror of what he had unleashed.

  
  


“I have to get out of here!” he cried as he ran out of the forest as fast as he could.

  
  


Sprinting through the trees as fast as he could, Luigi managed to find his way out of the forest, and onto a nearby dirt road. He stopped for a moment to catch his breath before he continued on.

  
  


“I need to find Mario! He knows what to do about every problem.”

  
  


Once he had regained his stamina, Luigi hurried to Peach's Castle. Along the way he wondered what the person he had accidentally released from that tower meant when he said he was taking back what was rightfully his.

  
  


“Was he talking about taking over the Mushroom Kingdom? If so, that's even more reason for me to get there as soon as I can!”

  
  


Mario and Peach were a good distance away from the castle themselves, as they were out on a walk for the morning. In the distance, Mario could see Luigi running toward them.

  
  


“Mario! Mario, I need your help!” Luigi shouted from a distance as he approached.

  
  


“There you are, Luigi!” Mario said, “Where did you wander off to?”

  
  


“He seems to be running awfully fast.” Peach noted, “Why do I get the feeling something bad happened?”

  
  


Luigi stopped just short of Mario, completely out of breath.

  
  


“Luigi, are you okay?” Mario asked.

  
  


“Mario, you gotta help me.” Luigi pleaded, trying to catch his breath, “I got lost in a forest, and found this tower. There was a guy in the tower. He said something about being freed, and taking back what's his. I think he's gonna try to take over the Mushroom Kingdom or something!”

  
  


“Slow down, Luigi! What are you talking about?” Mario told his brother.

  
  


Luigi reiterated slowly, “There was a guy, and he was in a tower that was in a forest. He sounded like he was gonna try to take over the Mushroom Kingdom. I need your help.”

  
  


“In a forest...” Peach said nervously, “If that's what I think it means...”

  
  


“What does it mean, Peach?” Mario asked.

  
  


“Luigi, I need you to take us to the place this happened right away. Mario, I'll explain what's going on when we get there.”

  
  


“Alright, Princess. Follow me.”

  
  


Luigi led Mario and Peach to the forest he had just escaped from minutes ago. Arriving at the edge of the forest, Peach had a look of uneasiness on her face.

  
  


“This is the exact spot where I left the forest.” Luigi said.

  
  


“It's just as I had feared. Mario, Luigi, this forest is part of an old Mushroom Kingdom folk tale. Toads warn their children of something terrible hiding here. I had always assumed it was just a fairy tale, but if what you're telling us is true, Luigi, then something terrible has been unleashed on the world.”

  
  


“We gotta go stop him!” Luigi shouted, beginning to run.

  
  


“Not so fast, Luigi.” Mario warned, holding him back, “We need to know what we're up against before we try to face anything. You said there was a tower in there, right?”

  
  


“Yeah. So we should look for something in that tower that can help us?”

  
  


“Exactly.” Peach added, “Luigi, lead us to the tower you found.”

  
  


Luigi looked into the woods. He dreaded the idea of going back in.

  
  


“Alright, Princess.” he said timidly.

  
  


Luigi escorted Mario and Peach into the forest, trying to remember where he saw the tower. After some wandering, he found the clearing he had seen before, and there was the tower. The doors, broken off their hinges, lay on the ground just outside the tower. The group entered into the tower to investigate. Inside they found furniture that had been thrown about, and various books scattered across the floor.

  
  


“This place is such a mess.” Peach complained, “Whoever lived here sure didn't expect to have any guests.

  
  


“Can we make this quick? This place is giving me the creeps.” Luigi said.

  
  


“Luigi, everything gives you the creeps.” Mario replied, “Now come help me search this place.”

  
  


During the search, Peach noticed a book laying on the floor. She picked it up, and flipped through the pages. One specific page caught her attention. The text was completely unreadable to her, but there was a drawing of what appeared to be a crystal. The image of the crystal was circled numerous times in ink. Peach flipped through the book some more, and found another image. This time, depicting a wand with a star on the end. The word “Mine” was written in large, poor handwriting, with an arrow pointing to the wand. The phrase “The temple” was also written underneath the image.

  
  


“Guys, I think you should see this.” Peach called, concernedly.

  
  


“This must have been what he meant by “Taking back what was his”.” Mario realized.

  
  


“But what does he mean by “The temple”?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“In Toad Town! The Star Sprite temple!” Peach realized, “We need to go there, now!”

  
  


“Hold onto that book.” Mario told Peach, “It might come in handy later.”

  
  


The trio hurried out of the forest, and made their way to Toad Town. Unsure of what this unknown villain might do, they ran as fast as they could before he could harm anyone. They stopped just short of the town to see a cloud of dust rising above the rooftops.

  
  


“Oh, no!” Peach cried, “We're too late!”

  
  


“Not just yet!” Mario said, “Come on, we need to get to that temple!”

  
  


Just around the corner, they found the temple of the Star Sprites, its entrance ravaged by an apparent battle. Much of the stone used in the stairs and pillars had broken off, and the debris had collected in piles at the bottom of the steps.

  
  


“Do you think our mystery enemy is still inside? We might not be able to take him on.” Luigi wondered.

  
  


“We need to go in there either way, there still might be survivors inside.” Mario said.

  
  


“There's nobody else in there.” a timid voice said from behind a tree.

  
  


“Who's there? Show yourself!” Luigi shouted.

  
  


From behind a nearby tree, a lone Toad in white and gold robes stepped out.

  
  


“Thank the stars you're here, Mario. Please, you must help us.”

  
  


“What happened here, and are you sure there's nobody else inside the temple?” Peach asked.

  
  


“Just now we were attacked by some kind of mage. He demanded to be let in, but the guards refused his entry. When he began his attack, we were given the order to evacuate the temple. I stuck around, and saw the battle. When it became clear that he was too powerful, the guards gave the order to retreat. If you're going in there, please be careful. He may be human, but the power he wields is of no ordinary mortal.”

  
  


“Do you know why he attacked you?” Mario asked.

  
  


“We believe he is trying to obtain the Star Wand that is held by the temple. If he is this powerful without the wand, then if he were to get it-”

  
  


“Well then that would be a real shame, wouldn't it?” a voice said from the temple.

  
  


Everyone turned around to see the cloaked figure standing just atop the stairs of the temple, holding a golden wand with a ruby star on its end. He flew from the top of the steps, down to hover just above Mario.

  
  


“Well, if it isn't Mario. I should have guessed that they'd call for their little hero to try and stop me.” he laughed.

  
  


“What? How do you know who I am?” Mario shouted.

  
  


“There's not a soul in the universe that hasn't heard all about your adventures.”

  
  


“You'll pay for what you did to my people!” Peach shouted.

  
  


“Oh please, Princess. Don't you have to get kidnapped or something? And you, in the green. I recognize you. Yes, I saw you running away after I was freed.”

  
  


Mario and Peach turned to Luigi in shock.

  
  


“Luigi, you were the one that released him?!” Mario asked.

  
  


“It was an accident! How was I supposed to know what was in that tower?”

  
  


“We'll discuss this later.” Peach scolded.

  
  


Mario turned back toward the cloaked man.

  
  


“Who are you, and what is it you're after?!” he asked.

  
  


“I suppose to express my gratitude for freeing me, I'll at least let you know who is about to destroy you. I am Magivi, and I am here to take back what is rightfully mine after a hundred years of captivity. Soon, I'll have the power I need to show those pathetic Star Sprites who's really in charge.”

  
  


“You'd try to destroy the Star Sprites?!” the Toad asked in horror, “Those years you were imprisoned have driven you insane!”

  
  


“I never said I didn't have a plan, you cowardly fungus. Taking back my wand is just step one of my goals. Look at me talk. You're all either going to be dead or under my control, soon.”

  
  


Mario tried to reason with the mage, “You have no idea what you're doing, Magivi. I've taken on villains like you countless times. It will only end badly for you.”

  
  


“On the contrary, let me show you the power that you face!”

  
  


Magivi raised his wand above his head. He then pointed it toward the pile of rubble at the foot of the temple stairs. The stones rose from the ground, and formed into the shape of bulky golem. The sculpture stood up, and it stomped toward Mario and Luigi. Scared, the Toad ran back behind the tree.

  
  


“Looks like I've still got it.” Magivi laughed, “I'll leave you all here to deal with my new pet. I’ve got debts to collect, and that unlimited power won’t obtain itself! So long!”

  
  


Magivi flew away, leaving Mario and Luigi staring down the giant stone golem. Peach stepped back behind the brothers.

  
  


“I know you two can take this thing down.” she said, “I'll leave this to you!”

  
  


“You ready, Luigi?”

  
  


“Ready as I'll ever be.”

  
  


The golem jumped into the air, landing with such force that it knocked everyone off their feet. Then, it turned to the debris left from the temple. It found a large piece of stone, and hurled it toward the brothers, who just barely managed to roll out of the way before they could be crushed. Mario quickly got back on his feet, and jumped at the golem, landing directly on its face. The golem lost its balance and fell to the ground. Luigi responded by taking his hammer and hitting the golem, chipping away some of the stone.

  
  


“Hey, you remembered to bring your hammer this time.” Mario joked.

  
  


“Would you shut up about that, I only forgot one time. Okay, maybe two.”

  
  


The golem picked itself off the ground, and swatted Mario and Luigi away. It then went back to the debris pile and threw a series of stones at the brothers. Mario and Luigi deflected these attacks with a series of successful hits with their hammers. After landing several return hits on the golem, its left arm broke into pieces. Without any regard for its missing limb, the golem ceased throwing stones at the brothers, and charged at them. Mario dove out of the way, while Luigi jumped over the charging golem. Unable to stop itself, the golem crashed headfirst into a tree, and Luigi landed safely on top of it. Frightened, the Toad hiding behind the tree let out a scream, and ran to seek cover behind another tree.

  
  


“Luigi, look!” Mario shouted, pointing to the golem, “It's stuck in the tree, now's our chance!”

  
  


Mario and Luigi attacked the golem with their hammers while it attempted to free itself. The golem did manage to escape the tree, but its remaining arm had been detached in the process. Losing both its arms caused it to become enraged, once again preparing to charge toward the brothers.

  
  


Luigi turned to his brother, and grinned, “Mario, it's time!”

  
  


“I'm ready, Luigi!”

  
  


Mario and Luigi locked hands, and Luigi spun around as fast as he could. The golem had begun its charge toward the brothers, and was approaching rapidly.

  
  


“Now, Luigi!”

  
  


Luigi released Mario from his grip, sending him flying toward the golem. Mario landed a direct hit onto the golem, causing it to fall to the ground. As much as it tried, it was unable to pick itself back up without arms. It laid helplessly on the ground as Mario and Luigi smashed it to pieces with their hammers until it was nothing but a pile of lifeless rubble.

  
  


“Alright! We did it!” Luigi cheered.

  
  


“Great job, both of you.” Peach congratulated.

  
  


With the threat gone, the Toad reemerged from behind the tree.

  
  


“Mario, Luigi, I offer you my thanks for defeating that creature, but Magivi got away. I fear the worst for us all.”

  
  


“Don't worry, we'll track him down and stop him.” Mario assured.

  
  


“I'm afraid it's not that simple. You see, he had referred to obtaining unlimited power. If that means what I think it means, he's after the Ascension Catalyst.”

  
  


“Ascension Catalyst? I've never heard of such a thing.” Peach questioned.

  
  


“The Ascension Catalyst is an ancient artifact, older than the Mushroom Kingdom itself. Very few know about it, as it was sealed away many, many years ago by the Star Sprites to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. It's said that the power contained within is enough to rival that of even the Star Sprites themselves.”

  
  


“Could it be that the object in that book we found is the Ascension Catalyst?” Luigi asked, “Peach, you still have that book, right?”

  
  


“I sure do. Here, take a look.”

  
  


Peach flipped through the pages of the book to find the image of the crystal she had previously seen, and showed it to the Toad.

  
  


“I've never seen what the Ascension Catalyst looks like, but I believe that could be it. Although, I don't understand this language the book is written in.”

  
  


“How are we going to find out where this thing is, then?” Mario asked.

  
  


The group pondered for a moment, then Luigi got an idea.

  
  


“We should go ask Professor E. Gadd!” he suggested, “He might be able to translate the book for us.”

  
  


“I don't have any better ideas.” Peach said, “What about you, Mario?”

  
  


“It's worth a shot.”

  
  


Meanwhile, in a nearby bush, Wario and Waluigi had been hidden during the entirety of the battle, and were spying on Mario and Luigi.

  
  


“You heard what they were talking about, right Waluigi?” Wario chuckled, “That “Ascension Thingamajig” sounds really valuable.”

  
  


“Yeah, and they said something about it being super powerful, too!”

  
  


“Come on, let's follow Mario and his team of chumps. We don't want them taking that thing before I- I mean we can get our hands on it.”

  
  


“This better not backfire horribly like the bake sale incident last month.”

  
  


“Don't worry about a thing, Waluigi. This is gonna go just fine. I'm gonna be so rich. Ha, ha, ha!”


	2. Chapter 2

With an indecipherable book in hand, Mario, Luigi, and Peach set out for Professor E. Gadd's laboratory, in hopes that they might be able to uncover its location, and stop Magivi from obtaining the power it holds. As the trio left for the lab, they met up with an old friend who might be a bit more than they could handle.

  
  


“Luigi, are you sure we're going the right way?” Peach asked as they wandered down the winding paths of the outskirts of the Mushroom Kingdom.

  
  


“I'm sure I know where I'm going. The Professor's lab is at the end of this road.”

  
  


“Last time you got lost, you freed an all-powerful, evil wizard bent on wreaking havoc across my kingdom.”

  
  


“Could you shut up about that?” Luigi grumbled, “How was I supposed to know that he was in that tower?”

  
  


“It doesn't matter who did what at this point.” Mario said, “We need to focus on stopping Magivi right now.”

  
  


“You're right, Mario. Let's get to the Professor's lab, and hopefully we won't have any more-”

  
  


“Hey, Peach! Is that you over there?!”

  
  


“-distractions...”

  
  


Peach was interrupted by a voice in the distance. She turned to see Daisy rapidly approaching.

  
  


“Hey Peach, long time no see! How have you been?” Daisy asked, as enthusiastic as ever.

  
  


“Daisy, it's nice to see you again, but it's really not the best time to chat.”

  
  


“What's going on? You on some kind of secret adventure or something?”

  
  


“It's not really an adventure, but it's very important.”

  
  


“Can I come along, too? I never get to go on any adventures with Mario, and you guys do it all the time.”

  
  


“Daisy, this is much too dangerous. We can't be constantly looking after you.”

  
  


“Please? I can hold my own. Just ask Luigi, he'll vouch for me!”

  
  


“Hey, I don't see the harm in bringing her along.” Luigi suggested, “Besides, having her come along could be useful if we need the extra help.”

  
  


“Alright, you can come.” Peach said, “But please be careful.”

  
  


“Alright! Thank you so much, Peach!.”

  
  


The group continued down the path to Professor E. Gadd's lab, with Daisy now by their side. Along the way, they encountered a group of Goombas, minding their own business. Daisy stopped the yell at them.

  
  


“Hey you, you stupid mushrooms!” Daisy shouted, “You guys think you're so tough, huh? Come over here and fight me!”

  
  


Mildly disturbed by Daisy's attempts to challenge them. The Goombas left into a nearby forest.

  
  


“Yeah, you better run!”

  
  


“Daisy, what are you doing? Besides slowing us down, of course.” Peach grumbled.

  
  


“Goombas are the enemy, right? How else do you expect me to get better at fighting if I don't defeat them in battle?”

  
  


“Do you think this is some kind of game? We can't afford any delays here. Come on, let's get going, and no more challenging random Goombas to fights.”

  
  


“Such a party pooper...” Daisy grumbled.

  
  


The team continued on without further delay until they arrived at Professor E. Gadd's lab. Luigi knocked on the door, and was greeted by the professor.

  
  


“Ah, well, if it isn't Luigi! It certainly has been a while, hasn't it?”

  
  


E. Gadd looked over Luigi's shoulder to see Mario, Peach, and Daisy standing behind him.

  
  


“I see you brought some friends as well.”

  
  


“Professor, if I may.” Peach said, “We're in need of help, and we came here because you're the only person we know that might be able to help us.”

  
  


“As much as I'd like to help you with whatever it is, Princess, I'm in the middle of an important experiment.”

  
  


“Please, Professor. It's very possible the fate of the world rests on this!” Luigi pleaded.

  
  


“Hmm, if you put it like that. Come on in and give me the rundown. Maybe I can help you here.”

  
  


The group entered the lab, and explained their encounter with Magivi. Going into detail about his power, and his goal to obtain the Ascension Catalyst. E. Gadd was intrigued by the situation Mario's group found themselves in. Meanwhile, Daisy was paying no attention to what they said, and was wandering aimlessly around the lab.

  
  


“So that brings us here.” Mario said, “We think that the book will tell us where the Ascension Catalyst is located, but we can't figure out the language.”

  
  


“We came here in hopes that you'd know something about it.”

  
  


E. Gadd looked through the book on his desk. After flipping through some of the pages, he smiled and got up from his chair.

  
  


“Well, linguistics isn't really my field of expertise.” he said, “However, I have come across this language in my research previously.”

  
  


E. Gadd walked to the bookshelf on the other side of the room. Reaching to the top shelf, he grabbed one of the books and returned to his desk. He opened his book, and scanned through the pages until he found what he was looking for.

  
  


“You see, this is a dead language. It hasn't been used for centuries. It was a little obscure and not well documented, but I've got a partial translation right here, and I might be able to use it to decipher some of the book on my own.”

  
  


“Thank you so much Professor, with this we might actually have a chance at stopping Magivi.” Luigi said.

  
  


“Okay, I think I've got something!” E. Gadd exclaimed.

  
  


Everyone in the lab crowded around the professor to see what he had found.

  
  


“It talks about that Ascension Catalyst you mentioned earlier. It says it was sealed away by the Star Sprites a real long time ago. They feared it would be used against them.”

  
  


“We already know that.” Mario said, “Is there anything else in there?”

  
  


“Hold on, I'm getting to it. Says here that there's a seal on it, and then it goes on to talk about a key.”

  
  


“Does the book say anything about the Catalyst's location?” Peach asked.

  
  


“Unfortunately I haven't found anything like that, but it says that the key was entrusted to the Yoshi Clan.”

  
  


“So the key to the Ascension Catalyst is on Yoshi's Island!” Mario exclaimed, “Thanks, Professor. Come on, everyone, let's get going!”

  
  


Before anyone could leave the lab, the door was blown off its hinges, and a familiar cloaked figure stood in the entrance.

  
  


“It's you again!” Luigi cried, “Can't you ever use a door like a normal person?”

  
  


“What can I say? I like to make an entrance, figuratively and literally.”

  
  


“I take it this is that wizard you mentioned earlier?” E. Gadd asked.

  
  


“How did you find us?” Mario asked sternly.

  
  


“It was quite simple really. I wasn't quite sure where to go after taking my wand, so I returned to my tower. When it found you had taken that book from me, I returned to the temple. Those Toads will tell you just about anything when you pin them to a wall, and that led me right to you.”

  
  


“You monster! You won't get away with this!” Peach shouted.

  
  


“Yeah! We're gonna get that key from the Yoshis before you even have the chance!” Daisy blurted out.

  
  


“Daisy!” everyone except Magivi shouted.

  
  


Magivi had a look of sudden confusion, which turned into a menacing smile.

  
  


“You know, I had planned on fighting you all to the death to get that book back, but you just saved me a lot of time and effort. So long, “heroes”!” he laughed as he flew away.

  
  


“Daisy, what did you do that for?” Peach asked angrily.

  
  


“I don't know. I kind of got caught up in the moment.”

  
  


“This is why I didn't want to bring you along. I had a feeling you'd do something like this.”

  
  


“Peach, please give me another chance. I can do better, I promise!”

  
  


“Daisy, you're my friend, and I love having you around. But you saw what we're going up against, and what's at stake. You need to be more careful about what you say and do.”

  
  


“I won't let you down, Peach! So, what do we do now?”

  
  


“Maybe we should get the Star Sprites to help us?” Luigi asked, “They'd probably know what to do best.”

  
  


“I've never really relied too heavily on them.” E. Gadd said, “They only ever do anything when you specifically send for their help, and even then there's a chance they'll just ignore your request entirely.”

  
  


“The Professor is right.” Peach concurred, “There's not enough time to send a request for their aid. We'll have to handle this on our own.”

  
  


“Alright, everyone, we need to get moving.” Mario declared, ”If we hurry, we might be able to stop Magivi before he gets to Yoshi's Island.”

  
  


“Mario, would it trouble you at all if I held on to this book? I'd like to run it by some of my colleagues who are better experienced in the subject.”

  
  


“Go ahead, Professor. It's all yours.”

  
  


Mario's group left Professor E. Gadd's lab, hoping to beat Magivi to Yoshi's Island. After they left, E. Gadd looked at the door that now laid before him on the floor of his lab.

  
  


“I'd better get this thing fixed, first.” he sighed, “It's already starting to get drafty in here.”

  
  


In a race against Magivi, Mario's team spares no time to make it to the Mushroom Kingdom's harbor, so they can catch a ride to Yoshi's Island.

  
  


“Come on, guys!” Daisy said, running ahead of the rest of the group, “The ferry to Yoshi's Island is this way! I can't wait to see the island, this is gonna be great!”

  
  


Peach ran to catch up with Daisy.

  
  


“We're not going sightseeing, just so you know. We need to get to the island, stop Magivi, and get the key. We wouldn't have to rush if a certain someone didn't blurt out the location of said key.” she explained.

  
  


“Listen, I'm sorry I did that, okay? Can we just get to the boat?”

  
  


“Daisy, I understand you're sorry, but you need to stop trying to be the hero all the time. It's gonna get you in trouble someday.”

  
  


“Yeah, yeah. I know.”

  
  


The group continued down the dock, and found that the ferry to Yoshi's Island was not there.

  
  


“It looks like the ferry's already left.” Mario said.

  
  


“How are we gonna get to the island now?” Luigi panicked.

  
  


“Hold on, Luigi. Let me check the schedule.”

  
  


Mario looked at the sign posted above the dock showing the times of the ferry's arrivals and departures.

  
  


“It looks like it's gonna be back in a few minutes.”

  
  


“We can't wait that long!” Daisy complained, “That magic guy is probably already on the island as we speak!”

  
  


“It's not gonna be that bad, Daisy.” Mario reassured her, “Besides, it'll give us some time to come up with a plan before we go.”

  
  


“You're not going anywhere, plumber boy!” a voice called out from the alleyways.

  
  


Out from the shadows stepped Wario and Waluigi, appearing ready for a battle.

  
  


“Wario and Waluigi?” Peach gasped, “What are you two doing here?”

  
  


“Word on the street is you're after something real valuable,” Waluigi laughed, “and you're gonna tell us where it is!”

  
  


“We're gonna get that Ascension Doohickey, and we're gonna be the richest people in the world!” Wario added.

  
  


“We don't even know where the Ascension Catalyst is, and even if we did, we wouldn't tell you.” Mario retorted.

  
  


“If you want the answer so bad, then why don't you try and take it from us!” Luigi shouted.

  
  


“Well if you insist. Come on, Waluigi. If it's a fight they want, it's a fight they'll get!”

  
  


“You just had to go and invite them, Luigi.” Peach sighed, “Come on, Daisy, we need to stand back.”

  
  


“What? Why can’t I join too?” Daisy whined.

  
  


Once the princesses were out of the way, Mario and Luigi turned to fight Wario and Waluigi. 

  
  


Waluigi made the first move, distracting Mario and Luigi by doing several jumps and flips around them, laughing all while doing it.

  
  


“Yeah, look at Waluigi!” Waluigi taunted.

  
  


This distracted the brothers from Wario, who landed a charge right into the brothers, sending them crashing into a large crate on the dock. The crate burst open, and a pile of fire flowers spilled out.

  
  


“Hey, look at this! There's fire flowers in this crate!” Luigi said.

  
  


Mario and Luigi used the flowers to hurl a barrage of fireballs toward Wario and Waluigi.

  
  


“Uh oh.” Wario gulped as he and Waluigi ducked into a nearby alleyway to take shelter from the fireballs.

  
  


Meanwhile, Daisy was eager to join the fight, but Peach held her back.

  
  


“Come on, Peach. Why won't you let me help them?”

  
  


“They're handling the fight well on their own. You'll only get in the way if you try to get yourself involved.”

  
  


“You're always such a party pooper!”

  
  


Behind the alleyway, Wario and Waluigi were trying to figure out a plan to stop Mario and Luigi. He looks up and sees a pipe sticking out from the side of the building.

  
  


“Waluigi, give me a boost up there.” he demanded.

  
  


Waluigi lifted Wario above his head. With a combination of Waluigi's height and Wario's strength, Wario was able to climb the pipe up to the roof of the building.

  
  


“Come on out, you cowards!” Luigi shouted.

  
  


“How about you pay attention, blockheads!” Wario shouted from the top of the roof.

  
  


Mario and Luigi looked up just in time to see Wario throw a bomb at them. The blast of the explosion knocked the brothers off their feet, and stripped them of their fire powers.

  
  


Mario, Luigi, are you alright?” Peach shouted.

  
  


“We're doing fine!” Mario replied.

  
  


Wario ran to catch up with Waluigi, who was now able to leave cover.

  
  


“Have another one!” Wario shouted as he hurled a second bomb toward Mario.

  
  


Mario reacted by returning the bomb with a swing from his hammer. The bomb hit Wario, who was then knocked down.

  
  


“Luigi, time to use the special move!”

  
  


“Okie dokie!”

  
  


Mario and Luigi locked hands, and Luigi began to spin around. When he released Mario from his grip, he went flying directly into Waluigi. Waluigi fell over, and Mario returned to Luigi's side. Wario picked himself off the ground, and saw Waluigi on the ground beside him.

  
  


“Get up, beanpole!” he shouted at Waluigi.

  
  


Waluigi picked himself up and dusted himself off.

  
  


“They're still going?” Peach asked.

  
  


“Man, they just won't stay down.” Daisy added.

  
  


“Hey, how come we don't use any moves like that?” Waluigi asked.

  
  


“We do now! You saw what they did, right? You do it!”

  
  


Waluigi grabbed Wario's hands and spun him around, just as Luigi did with Mario. He then released Wario, sending him toward Mario and Luigi. The brothers reacted by taking their hammers, and hitting Wario as he reached them. The force of both swings sent him flying right back toward Waluigi, who had just enough time to panic before Wario collided with him, knocking both of them out. Victorious, Mario and Luigi regrouped with Peach and Daisy.

  
  


“That takes care of those two.” Mario said.

  
  


“You guys did great!” Daisy cheered, “You really showed them who's boss!”

  
  


Peach looked over Mario's shoulder to see Wario and Waluigi unconscious on the ground.

  
  


“Do you think they'll be alright?” she asked.

  
  


“I've seen them in action before.” Mario replied, “They've come back from worse.”

  
  


“They always seem to show up at the most inconvenient of times.”

  
  


From out on the water, there was a sounding of a horn. The group looked to see the ferry to Yoshi's Island had arrived during the battle, and was preparing to leave again.

  
  


“The ferry! We almost forgot!” Luigi cried, “Come on, everyone, we gotta get moving!”

  
  


Mario's team scrambled to board the ferry just as it was about to leave. Once on the ferry was out at sea, Daisy could barely contain her excitement.

  
  


“This is gonna be great!” she cheered as she enthusiastically ran around the boat, “I've never been to Yoshi's Island before! Mario you gotta tell me what it's like!”

  
  


“Daisy, calm down!” Peach scolded, “If you move any faster, you'll tip the boat.”

  
  


“Sorry, I just can't wait to see the island!”

  
  


“Remember, we're not there to go sightseeing. We've got an important mission.” Mario reminded her.

  
  


“Speaking of which,” Luigi added, “what's the plan once we get there?”

  
  


“Professor E. Gadd said that the key was given to the Yoshi Clan. Our best bet at getting information about its location is to find the Yoshi Elder and ask them.”

  
  


“With how delayed we've been in getting to the island, there's a pretty good chance we'll run into Magivi.” Peach considered, “What do we do if we find him?”

  
  


“If we have to fight him head-on, we're not likely to win. If we want any chance of getting this key, we need to avoid him at all costs.”

  
  


The horn of the ferry sounded, signaling that they had arrived at the island.

  
  


“That's our stop, let's get going.” Mario said.

  
  


Mario led the group out of the boat, but was quickly overtaken by Daisy, as she rushed ahead to get a view of the island. She ran to the end of the pier, and onto the beach, where she stopped to look at the lush rainforest in front of her.”

  
  


“Wow! This place is incredible!” Daisy shouted in awe.

  
  


From above the treetops, a plume of smoke rose into the air. Luigi took notice, and became incredibly concerned.

  
  


“Hey, don't you think it's a little early to be having a bonfire?” he wondered, pointing to the smoke in the air.

  
  


“If that's what I think is, we need to hurry!” Mario shouted, running into the forest.

  
  


Mario took off down a stone path into the forest, with Luigi following close behind. Peach turned around to see Daisy still standing on the beach, admiring the natural beauty of the island. She hurried over and pulled Daisy along with her.

  
  


“Okay, okay! I'm coming!” Daisy whined.

  
  


The group hurried down the path until they arrived at the Yoshi's Village. There, they saw a terrible sight. Huts had been destroyed, some had their roofs set on fire. The Yoshi's were all in a panic.

  
  


“I think I can guess what happened here.” Mario said solemnly.

  
  


“This is terrible.” Peach cried, “This is all the more reason to stop Magivi.”

  
  


The group continued further into the village, and found the Elder of the Yoshi Clan.

  
  


“Mario? Is that you?” the Elder asked, “Thank the stars. We may still have hope after all.”

  
  


“We're here to help you and the Yoshis.” Mario said, “Tell us everything that happened.”

  
  


“It was terrible. A man in a robe approached me, demanding that we give him an ancient key. The key he was referring to was gifted to our tribe many generations ago by the Star Sprites.”

  
  


“I knew he was behind this!” Luigi scowled.

  
  


“I refused to tell him the location, as it is sacred to the Yoshi Clan. When I told him this, he cast a magic attack, setting one of the village houses on fire. The fire quickly spread out of our control, and has destroyed several of my peoples' homes.”

  
  


“Elder, if there's anything we can do to help your people, please let us.” Peach said.

  
  


“I appreciate your offer, Princess, however the worst of the fires seem to have passed, and as far as we know, nobody was harmed. All I request of you is that you stop that man from taking the key. I will grant you the location of the key. It is at the top of the mountain, inside its fiery heart.”

  
  


The village Elder pointed to the volcano peering over the treetops.

  
  


“I assure you, the mountain itself is safe. However, with that evil mage searching for our key, I cannot guarantee absolute safety.”

  
  


“We'll protect your people, Elder. You can count on us.” Mario said, “Alright everyone, you heard him. Let's get that key!”

  
  


“How will we get to the top of the mountain, though?” Luigi asked, “It's a really long way up.”

  
  


“Yes, and- Hold on, where's Daisy?” Peach asked, noticing Daisy's sudden absence from the group, “She was right here just a moment ago.”

  
  


“Hey guys, guess what!” Daisy called out, riding on the back of a Yoshi, with three others following behind, “I told these Yoshis what's going on, and they agreed to take us to the top of the mountain!”

  
  


“That takes care of that problem, then.” Luigi said, “Alright, let's get moving. Magivi isn't gonna just wait for us.”

  
  


“I wish you all good fortune in your efforts.” The Elder said as Mario's team left for the volcano.

  
  


With the location of the key obtained, it was now a race against time to reach it before Magivi. The Yoshis carried Mario and his team up to the volcano as fast as they could. Much of the path was overgrown by the jungle, making it difficult to maneuver.

  
  


“You know, for something so important, they don't do a very good job of maintaining the path up here.” Peach complained as she pulled the twigs from her hair.

  
  


“Oh come on, it's not that bad.” Daisy laughed, “If you think a few leaves are that bad, there's no way you'd last five minutes in any sport but tennis!”

  
  


As a show of strength to Peach, Daisy rushed in front of her, and rode her Yoshi through the low branches of a tree. When she emerged, she was covered in leaves and twigs. It was then at this point she noticed the remains of a spider web on her face.

  
  


“Ahh! Spider! Get it off me! Get it off!” she cried as she flailed around, nearly falling off her Yoshi.

  
  


Peach sighed, “This is why I don't bring you anywhere.”

  
  


As they neared the peak of the mountain, they came to a clearing atop a cliff overlooking the island. Daisy dismounted from her Yoshi to get a view.

  
  


“Wow, this place is incredible! You can see the whole island from up here!”

  
  


“Yeah, it's pretty great, isn't it?” Luigi said.

  
  


“Luigi! Daisy! Look over here!” Mario called.

  
  


Mario gathered everyone to see what he had found. Before them was a cave that tunneled into the side of the volcano. It went on for what looked like forever.

  
  


“Looks like this is the place.” Mario said.

  
  


“Hey, if it's okay with you guys, I'm just gonna wait out here.” Luigi chuckled timidly, slinking back toward the Yoshis.

  
  


“Oh no you don't.” Daisy said, pulling Luigi back, “We need everyone in case we gotta fight in there.”

  
  


“You guys wait out here, okay?” Peach told the Yoshis, “We'll be back soon, take care!”

  
  


“Well, here we go.” Mario said, concernedly.

  
  


Mario, Peach, and Daisy entered the cave. Luigi stalled behind, fearful of what may lie at the end of the tunnel.

  
  


“Going into a volcano to fight an insane mage. Why can't we ever go somewhere nice, like the beach?”

  
  


“Luigi, hurry up!” Mario's voice echoed from in the tunnel.

  
  


“Coming!” Luigi replied as he hurried to catch up with the rest of the group.

  
  


As they continued further down the cave, they could hear the bubbling of lava getting louder and louder. The temperature in the air rose as they began to see a red glow coming from the end of the tunnel.

  
  


“It looks like we're almost there.” Mario warned, “Be ready, everyone. We don't know what to expect from this place.”

  
  


The group turned a corner to find themselves in a large cave. Several other tunnels lined its walls, with a great lava lake in the center illuminating the heart of the volcano.

  
  


“What is this place?” Peach asked in awe.

  
  


The group wandered around through the cave, the other tunnels leading to rooms that seemed to house various puzzles and traps.

  
  


“This place must've been built by the Yoshi Clan to protect that key.” Mario said, “There's no way any of this was a natural formation.”

  
  


“It's a shame it didn't do a very good job.” a familiar voice echoed through the cave.

  
  


Magivi appeared from a tunnel suspended above the lava lake, swinging a large red key around his finger. He flew over to Mario, hovering just out of reach above the lava.

  
  


“I must say, it's a shame that all those puzzles went to waste, they were way too easy when I could just fly over everything.”

  
  


“You won't escape with that key!” Luigi shouted, “We'll fight you for it if we have to!”

  
  


“Yeah! Why don't you come down here, and fight like a man, magic guy!” Daisy shouted.

  
  


Magivi looked up at the roof of the cave, then looked back to Mario's team, and laughed.

  
  


“I could destroy you all right now, but I don't really feel like putting in all that extra effort. I've got a better idea.”

  
  


Magivi rose his wand, and fired a blast at the roof of the cave, causing a rockslide to fall into the lava lake below.

  
  


“I hope those overalls and dresses are fireproof!” he said as he flew toward the tunnel leading to the surface, “Oh, and by the way, it's Magivi, Princess. Not that you'll be needing to remember it, or anything!”

  
  


As Magivi escaped through the tunnel, he fired one more blast before leaving, causing more stones to pile up in front of the cave's exit, sealing Mario's team inside.

  
  


“What are we gonna do?” Luigi asked.

  
  


The lava began to stir as a loud rumble filled the cave, shaking the ground around everyone. A massive, red dragon then emerged from the lava. It had a large nose that was nearly as big as the rest of its head, and a green shell that covered most of its back. It let out a roar that echoed through the cave.

  
  


“What is that thing?” Peach asked.

  
  


“It looks like some kind of giant Yoshi!” Mario shouted, “But how can it survive in the lava?”

  
  


Peach remembered something she had seen when they first entered the cave, and came up with a plan.

  
  


“Daisy, I have an idea, follow me!”

  
  


“Alright everyone, if we work together we can-” Luigi said before turning around to see Peach running off with Daisy behind her.

  
  


“Peach! Daisy! Where are you going?”

  
  


“Just hold that thing off until we get back!” Peach shouted as she took Daisy into one of the tunnels.

  
  


“Looks like it's just you and me, Luigi.”

  
  


“It always is..”

  
  


The dragon let out another roar, and swiped its claw at the brothers. Both of them dove out of the way, and the dragon's claw hit the wall of the cave, knocking many stones into the lava lake. The dragon then sank back into the lava, only to resurface with a mouth full of molten stones. It spit them at the brothers, who successfully dodged each of them. The dragon then pulled its tail from the lava, and swung it around the cave, knocking even more stones into the lava. Again, the dragon dove into the lake to prepare another attack.

  
  


“We've gotta do something to this thing!” Mario said.

  
  


“What if we tried throwing stones back at it?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“It's worth a shot.”

  
  


Mario and Luigi gathered as many stones as they could carry. When the dragon emerged from the lava, they hurled the stones as hard as they could. The dragon sat motionless as the stones harmlessly bounced off of its large nose.

  
  


“Do you have any other ideas?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“I've got one: run!”

  
  


The brothers split up and ran as the dragon fired another barrage of molten stones at the brothers.

  
  


“If Peach and Daisy were still here, they could at least help us think of something!” Luigi said as he dodged the dragon's attack.

  
  


“Just focus on not getting hit! Peach said they'd be back!”

  
  


Mario! Luigi! We're back!” Daisy shouted as she ran up to the brothers.

  
  


“About time! Where did you even go?” Luigi asked, annoyed.

  
  


“When we first arrived here, I noticed a chest on the other side of a large pit in one of the rooms.” Peach explained, “I figured there was something important inside it.”

  
  


“So she had me climb over and open it.”

  
  


“What was inside the chest?” Mario asked.

  
  


“This.” Peach said as she handed a large, red shield to Luigi.

  
  


“A shield?” Luigi wondered, confused, “I don't see how this is gonna help us with the dragon.”

  
  


Suddenly, the dragon rose from the lava, and spat another barrage of molten rocks at Luigi.

  
  


“Luigi, look out!” Mario shouted.

  
  


Luigi panicked and hid behind the shield. To his surprise, the shield deflected the rocks back at the dragon, hitting it directly in the head. In pain, the dragon let out a roar.

  
  


“I now see how this is gonna help us with the dragon.”

  
  


The dragon swung its tail around again, this time more erratically. Everyone scrambled to avoid being hit by the following rockslide. The dragon again submerged into the lava, collected the molten stones, and resurfaced to attack. It turned to see Daisy separated from the rest of the group, and fired at her.

  
  


“Daisy, catch!” Luigi shouted as he threw the shield to her.

  
  


Daisy caught the shield just in time to deflect the stones back toward the dragon. This time however, the dragon ducked out of the way of the stones.

  
  


“Dang it, I missed!”

  
  


Daisy looked up to see the dragon preparing another attack. Above the dragon, she noticed a large piece of the cave's ceiling looked like it was about to collapse. When the dragon fired another molten rock at her, she angled the shield to deflect just above the dragon's head. The stone hit the roof of the cave, and a large boulder landed directly on the head of the dragon. The dragon fell into the lava, swinging its tail into the cave's entrance as it fell, clearing the stones that had blocked the exit. Everyone rushed over to congratulate Daisy for defeating the dragon.

  
  


“Great job Daisy!” Luigi congratulated.

  
  


“See, I told you guys I'd be able to hold my own on your team!”

  
  


The celebration was cut short however, as another rumble shook the cave. The lava in the lake began to boil, then it started to rise.

  
  


“Everyone, move! Get out of here!” Mario shouted as he hurried everyone out of the cave.

  
  


The group hurried out through the same tunnel they came from. On the way out, Daisy tripped, and dropped the shield. She attempted to pick it back up, but saw the lava rising quickly, and had to abandon it. Once out of the cave, the group met back up with the Yoshis, and watched as lava poured from the cave, and down the cliff, into the ocean below.

  
  


“Talk about a close call.” Luigi said, “One more second in that cave, and we'd have been roasted.”

  
  


“If everyone's alright, we should get heading back to the Yoshi village.” Mario said.

  
  


“There's no point in waiting around here, I guess.” Daisy added.

  
  


“Daisy's right, let's get moving.” Peach added.

  
  


Mario's team rode the Yoshis back to the village. Once they returned, they met back up with the Elder, who was concerned about the recent events.

  
  


“First this evil wizard arrives and threatens our people, then the mountain lets loose its molten rage. It has not done that in many, many years.” the Elder fretted, “These are signs of dark times. You may be our only hope, Mario.”

  
  


“I'm still upset we weren't able to get to that key in time. What else is there stopping Magivi, now?” Luigi wondered.

  
  


“I doubt that key is the only thing he needs to get to the Ascension Catalyst.” Mario guessed, “There's going to be plenty more opportunities to stop him.”

  
  


“Mario's right. I'm just glad we made it out of that volcano in one piece.” Peach added, “But where do we go from here?”

  
  


“I wish I could assist you further in your quest, Princess.” the Elder said, “However, I must stay here to protect the people of the village. I wish you the best of luck.”

  
  


The group made their way back to the pier, and found the ferry waiting at the island. They quickly boarded the return trip, and set off for the Mushroom Kingdom. As the boat left, Wario and Waluigi swam up to the shore of Yoshi's Island, absolutely exhausted.

  
  


“You know we could have just waited for the boat to return, and taken that here.” Waluigi said.

  
  


“Oh just shut up, Waluigi. Mario and his chumps are somewhere on this island, I can practically smell them!”

  
  


Wario and Waluigi followed the stone path into the jungle, and arrived at the Yoshi village. There, they found the Elder, and demanded he speak up.

  
  


“Hey, you! You look important!” Wario shouted, “Tell me, did Mario show up here?”

  
  


“As a matter of fact, he did arrive on our island today.” the Elder said, “I'm afraid he just left, though. You're more than welcome to stay here while you wait for the ferry to return.”

  
  


Hearing this, Wario and Waluigi collapsed to the ground, completely drained of energy.

  
  


“Are you two going to be alright?” the Elder asked.


	3. Chapter 3

Once the ferry returned to the Mushroom Kingdom pier, Mario's team returned to Professor E. Gadd's lab to inform him of what happened on Yoshi's Island. Mario knocked on the door of the lab, and was greeted by the professor.

  
  


“Ah, Mario! Perfect timing, I've just now made a breakthrough in translating that book you gave me!” he grinned, “Why don't you all step inside, and I'll show you what I found.”

  
  


“So did you figure out where the Ascension Catalyst is?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“I'm afraid I haven't figured that out just yet. I contacted a friend of mine who specializes in archaeology, and she lent me a hand with translating the book.”

  
  


“So what did you find?”

  
  


“I found that there's actually a second key hidden away. Speaking of which, let's take a look at that first key.”

  
  


“Yeah, about that.” Mario apologized.

  
  


“Sounds to me like he beat you to it, huh?”

  
  


“We would have gotten to it first if a certain someone didn't run their mouth at every possible chance she got.” Peach scolded.

  
  


“Could you shut up about it, already? I told you I was sorry about it!” Daisy retorted.

  
  


“You do realize the world is at stake here, right? We can't afford mistakes like that.”

  
  


“Calm down, girls.” E. Gadd interrupted, “As long as you get this next key, we should be fine.”

  
  


“So, where is this second key, Professor?” Mario asked.

  
  


“By the looks of things, the second key was put in a temple in what is now the eastern border of the Mushroom Kingdom.”

  
  


“That's the desert!” Daisy exclaimed, “I cut through there all the time to get to the Mushroom Kingdom!”

  
  


“I suppose that makes this a little easier.” Mario said.

  
  


“Oh, one more thing before you go.” E. Gadd added as he handed Luigi a small portable radio, “I'll give you a call on this if I find anything new.”

  
  


“Thanks, Professor. Now let's get going. There's no telling how long we have before Magivi finds out about this next key.”

  
  


“This is great! Finally I get to lead the mission!” Daisy cheered with pride.

  
  


“With her leading, this is more of a suicide mission.” Peach joked under her breath.

  
  


Daisy eagerly led Mario's team to the eastern desert of the Mushroom Kingdom. Meanwhile, in the Koopa Kingdom, word of Magivi's attacks had reached the ears of their not-so-noble king.

  
  


“Kamek! Where are those intel reports?!” Bowser roared.

  
  


“Right away, Sir!” Kamek responded, running into the throne room, “According to the reports, this morning the Star Sprite temple in Toad Town was attacked.”

  
  


“I already know that, I was the one that ordered the investigation! Now tell me something I don't know!”

  
  


“Right, right. While the perpetrator of the attack remains unidentified, we've received new reports that the Yoshi Village on Yoshi's Island was attacked today, as well. Given the historic ties the Yoshi Clan has maintained with the Star Sprites, it's incredibly likely these two events are connected.”

  
  


Bowser stood up from his throne and walked out onto the balcony, with Kamek following him.

  
  


“If what you say is true, and these two events are connected, then something big is happening. I want in on it! Send scouts out to track down Mario, there's no way he hasn't gotten involved by now.”

  
  


“Are you sure you want to do this, Sir? After all, if both the temple and the Yoshi Clan were attacked by the same person or group, that would mean they're quite powerful. It could be dangerous to-”

  
  


“Dangerous? Do you know who I am? I eat danger for breakfast! If I come out on top here, there's probably something huge in it for me. Now go send those scouts to find Mario, that's an order!”

  
  


“Very well then. I will inform you when they locate Mario.”

  
  


Daisy had successfully led Mario's team to the desert. However her ability to lead them to their destination had reached its limit as they soon found themselves aimlessly wandering the desert in search of the temple.

  
  


“Daisy, I don't think this is working. We've been out here for hours, and there isn't a single sign of the temple anywhere.” Mario said.

  
  


“Yeah, and I'm getting tired. You sure we can't come back out here and look for it tomorrow?” Luigi proposed.

  
  


“I'm with them. It was a mistake to come to the desert in a dress.” Peach added, trying to carry her dress over the sand.

  
  


“Okay, fine. We'll find somewhere to rest for the night.” Daisy said.

  
  


“Daisy, you know this desert better than anyone here. Are there any safe places to set up camp?” Peach asked.

  
  


“Yeah, hold on, I'm thinking of something.”

  
  


Daisy peered into the distance. She could see that the sun was about to set behind a large hill. This gave her an idea.

  
  


“If my memory serves me correct, there's a settlement nearby just over that hill there.”

  
  


“That's great!” Luigi cheered, “I was afraid we'd have to camp out in the desert at night. It gets cold out here.”

  
  


“Even more reason to get moving! We want to make it there before dark.” Daisy called as she led the group over the hill to the settlement.

  
  


Daisy led the team as they climbed to the top of the hill. At its foot, they could see a small town built up around an oasis. The lights in the streets and houses stood out against the darkened skies. A large sign was posted outside the entrance of the settlement bearing its name: Shy Oasis. Once inside, they noticed that the population of the settlement was made up almost entirely of Shy Guys.

  
  


“Did you know about this place, Peach?” Mario asked.

  
  


“I knew there was some kind of settlement out here, but I didn't realize it was this close to the Mushroom Kingdom.”

  
  


As they continued down the main street of the settlement, the town's citizens went about their evenings around them. Some were enjoying dinner together, others were street vendors packing up for the day. None of them seemed to take notice of Mario's team as they continued until they came to an inn just beside the oasis lake.

  
  


“Let's hope they still have a room left.” Peach said as they entered.

  
  


In the lobby, a Shy Guy dressed in yellow, and wearing a green apron looked up from his desk and immediately recognized the two princesses. Not one to pass up an opportunity, he rushed to greet them personally.

  
  


“If it isn't Princess Peach herself, and Princess Daisy!” he exclaimed, shaking their hands, “I never expected to have royalty visiting my humble inn! I'll have our best room prepared for you at once!”

  
  


“I hope it's a room for four. We've got Mario and Luigi with us as well.” Daisy added.

  
  


From the corner of the lobby, a lone Shy Guy sat in a chair. Upon seeing Mario's team in the inn, he stopped reading from his book, and eavesdropped on the conversation between the princesses and the innkeeper.

  
  


“Of course! I'll make sure each and every one of your needs is taken care of during your stay here. Now, might I ask what brings someone like you to the desert?”

  
  


“You see, we're looking for a temple.” Peach whispered, “It was one that belonged to the Star Sprites.”

  
  


“We've been looking all over the desert today, but we haven't found squat!” Daisy added.

  
  


“I see.” the innkeeper mumbled, “Well, I'm afraid that's one thing I can't help you with personally. However, I'd consider checking the library down the street. There might be something to help you there. You should go do that while your room is being prepared.”

  
  


The Shy Guy that had been listening to their conversation quietly got up and left the inn without anyone noticing him.

  
  


“It doesn't seem like there's anything else for us to do. Let's see if there's anything at that library.” Luigi suggested.

  
  


At the library, the group searched through the shelves of books. The vast majority of the books didn't have any relation to what they were looking for, and some of the books were out of place on the shelves.

  
  


“Did anyone find anything yet?” Mario whispered.

  
  


“I'm not sure how anyone is supposed to find anything here. Whoever put these on the shelves did a terrible job.” Daisy complained.

  
  


Sorting through the various books on the shelves, one managed to catch Daisy's eye. She pulled it from the shelf and read the title: “Forgotten Sands: the Desert's Lost History”.

  
  


“Guys, I think I found something!” Daisy called.

  
  


“Daisy, be quiet. We're in a library.” Peach scolded.

  
  


“Sorry, but I think I found the book.”

  
  


The team crowded around a table, and flipped through the pages of the book. Stopping when they found a chapter about the Star Sprites.

  
  


“Perfect, this is exactly what we needed. Thank the stars it's not in the same language as that other book.” Peach said, “It says here that a temple devoted to the Star Sprites was built in the desert centuries ago.”

  
  


“Yeah, we knew that. What else?” Daisy grumbled impatiently.

  
  


“It goes on. It's unknown what civilization built the temple, as its architecture doesn't match any known civilization that inhabited the desert.”

  
  


“Does it say anything about its location?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“Yeah, I'm getting to that. It says there's a group of five pillars out in the desert, and that they have some kind of connection to the temple based on a riddle found on one of the pillars.”

  
  


“What's the riddle say?” Mario asked.

  
  


“It says, “When the shining stone is placed atop the tallest pillar, the sands shall part, and reveal the way.””

  
  


“So we need to find this “shining stone”? We're really not making any progress here.” Luigi complained.

  
  


“I'll admit I'm not sure where to go from here.” Peach conceded, flipping through the pages of the book, “There's no other mention of a shining stone in here.”

  
  


“It's getting late, we should probably sleep on it, and keep searching in the morning.” Mario suggested.

  
  


The team left the library and returned to the inn, where the innkeeper was waiting for them.

  
  


“Your room is all ready for you, princesses. Tell me, did you find anything about that temple?” he asked as enthusiastic as usual.

  
  


“Yes and no.” Peach replied, “We found that the temple was hidden away, but we need something called a “shining stone” to enter the temple.”

  
  


“Sounds like you've got some work cut out for yourselves there. For now, why don't you call it a night for now. Good luck on your adventure tomorrow!”

  
  


“With where we're at right now, we're gonna need all the luck we can get.” Daisy thanked the innkeeper.

  
  


Mario's team went upstairs to their room. It was a fully furnished room with four beds lined up, and a balcony overlooking the oasis.

  
  


“He sure wasn't kidding when he said it was the best room here!” Mario said, pleased with what they had.

  
  


“Something about all this seems familiar, but I can't put my finger on it.” Luigi thought nervously.

  
  


Mario's team settled in for the night, and rested up for the trip into the desert that awaited them the next day. The next morning, the hot desert sun shone through the balcony as everyone woke up.

  
  


“I hope everyone got enough sleep.” Mario said, “We've gotta go find- hold on, what's this?”

  
  


Mario noticed something on the table in their room that wasn't there the night before. It was a large crystal in the shape of a star with a note beside it.

  
  


“I believe this is your “shining stone” that you need to get into that temple. Sorry for lying about not being able to help, I couldn't discuss this in person.” the note read.

  
  


“That innkeeper sure is an odd fellow.” Peach wondered.

  
  


“Hey, don't worry about that. We can get to the temple now!” Daisy cheered.

  
  


After checking out of the inn, the group make their way back into the desert to search for the five pillars. As the desert was mostly flat, they managed to locate them in very little time. Each pillar was a different height, with the shortest one of them holding a plaque, with the same riddle they had seen in the book the day before.

  
  


“This looks like the place, but how will we get the star on the pillar?” Peach asked, looking up at the tallest pillar.

  
  


“Leave that one to me.” Mario said.

  
  


Mario took the crystal in his hand, and jumped up onto the smallest pillar, he then used the pillars in ascending order like a set of stairs to reach the tallest one. Placing the crystal star in a specially made slot on top of the pillar, he then jumped down. The ground began to tremble as the sand between the pillars sunk into the ground, revealing the entrance to the temple.

  
  


“I should have known you'd be able to get up there, Mario.” Peach said.

  
  


“Come on guys! That key isn't gonna find itself!” Daisy shouted as she ran into the temple.

  
  


“Daisy, wait! Don't go in alone!” Peach pleaded as the group followed her into the temple.

  
  


Inside the temple, the floors, walls, and ceiling were all constructed of sandstone bricks. Sand covered the floor, and was also spilling from cracks in the ceiling. Torches on the wall provided a dim light, despite being submerged beneath the desert for possible centuries.

  
  


“This place gives an awful creepy vibe, doesn't it?” Mario asked, “Like something's about to jump out at us.”

  
  


“Please don't say that. I already don't want to be down here.” Luigi shuddered as he trailed behind everyone.

  
  


“How do you think these torches managed to stay lit for all these years under the sand?” Peach asked.

  
  


“Maybe they're some kind of magic torch.” Daisy replied, “These guys probably had plenty of magic to go around.”

  
  


At the end of a long corridor, the team found themselves in front of a stone door, with several large stone buttons lining the wall next to it.

  
  


“If the riddle to get into this place was any indication, this is probably some kind of puzzle.” Mario hypothesized, closely inspecting the door, “I'd also be willing to bet there's a trap that will trigger if we get it wrong. We'd better think carefully about this. Are there any clues nearby?”

  
  


“Alright, let me show you how it's done.” Daisy declared, proudly marching up to the buttons on the wall.

  
  


“Daisy what are you doing?” Peach yelled, “You're gonna get us all killed!”

  
  


Daisy pressed buttons in a completely random order. Then, the room began to rumble. Sand fell out of the cracks in the walls. Then the rumbling stopped, and the door opened.

  
  


“See, I told you I got it.” Daisy boasted as she continued through the door.

  
  


Mario, Luigi, and Peach stood in disbelief, unable to understand what just happened. Regaining their composure, they ran to catch up with Daisy. They found themselves in another long corridor. At the end of the hall was a circular room with a single pedestal, holding a large, yellow key.

  
  


“That looks like the key, but what's it doing just sitting there?” Luigi asked, suspicious of the situation.

  
  


“We should be careful about taking it. There could be a trap.” Peach warned.

  
  


Daisy walked over to the pedestal, and took the key from it.

  
  


“Come on, you guys worry too easily.” she laughed, swinging the key around her finger, “Let's get out of here, alright?”

  
  


The pedestal fell into the ground, and the whole room began to rumble. Trapdoors in the walls opened up, and sand poured in, slowly filling the temple.

  
  


“Come on, everyone! We need to get out, now!” Mario yelled as he hurried everyone down the hallway.

  
  


The team ran as fast as they could to avoid being caught in the rising sands. Only when they made it out of the temple, and back into the blinding light of the desert sun did they stop to catch their breath. Behind them, the temple was engulfed by sand, and disappeared.

  
  


“Is everyone alright?” Mario asked.

  
  


“That was great!” Daisy giggled excitedly, “Honestly though, I'm a bit disappointed. I was expecting something to fight. At least a mummy or something.”

  
  


“You almost got us killed multiple times in there!” Peach scolded, “Maybe it's for the better we didn't have a monster chasing us in there.”

  
  


“Lighten up, will you? We got the key, and made it out alive!”

  
  


“Daisy's right.” Luigi added, “Let's get back to the lab and see if the professor found anything new.”

  
  


“Alright, then. Let's just try to avoid any more trouble on the way back.”

  
  


“Hold on there, Team Good Guys!” a void roared from behind.

  
  


Recognizing the voice, Peach's mood immediately soured.

  
  


“Oh great, as if we needed you to get involved.” she groaned as she turned to see Bowser standing behind them.

  
  


“You thought you could go on an adventure and just leave Bowser out of it?”

  
  


“Finally, some action! Bring it on!” Daisy shouted.

  
  


“Hold on, do I know you?” Bowser asked.

  
  


“What?! Of course we've met before! I'm Princess Daisy!”

  
  


“Whatever, I'm not here for you. I'm more interested in that temple you guys are looking for.”

  
  


“How did you know about the temple?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“Let's just say I have friends. Now tell me where that temple is or I'll beat the answer out of you!”

  
  


“We already got what we wanted.” Mario said, “Why don't you just let us get back to saving the world?”

  
  


“So you want to do this the hard way? Well if it's a fight you want, then it's a fight you'll get!”

  
  


“There just isn't any reasoning with him, is there.” Peach sighed, shaking her head.

  
  


“Alright, here's how this is gonna work; I want a one-on-one battle with Mario. Winner gets the treasure in that temple!”

  
  


Daisy objected, “That's ridiculous! You expect us to just sit and watch while you two fight?”

  
  


“I had a feeling you'd say that, so I brought a little help. Kamek, if you would?”

  
  


Kamek flew out from behind Bowser, and cast a spell, trapping Luigi, Daisy, and Peach in a magical barrier.

  
  


“Hey, what gives? Let us out right now!” Daisy yelled, pounding on the side of the barrier.

  
  


“Relax, Princess, you will be released once the fight is over.” Kamek assured.

  
  


“Alright, now back to business. You might as well give up now, Mario. This place was practically built for me to win! There's no bombs to be thrown into, no lava to fall in, no structural weaknesses for you to exploit, I'm basically invincible here!”

  
  


Mario shrugged, “Could we please just hurry this up? I don't really have the time for this.”

  
  


“Why you little-” Bowser roared as he threw the first punch.

  
  


Mario jumped over Bowser's attack, landing behind him. Bowser let out a roar and began to breathe fire in a circle around him. Mario hurried to take shelter behind one of the pillars.

  
  


“You can't hide forever!” Bowser shouted.

  
  


Bowser stopped breathing fire, and curled into a ball inside his shell. He rolled toward Mario at a high speed, crashing into the pillar with enough force to topple it. The pillar collapsed, with the rubble falling and burying Bowser beneath it. Mario stopped for a moment, to see if Bowser would recover. Bowser reached his hand out from under the debris, and clawed his way out.

  
  


“Note to self: don't do that again.” Bowser said aside as he dug himself out, “Now, back to business.”

  
  


Bowser leapt into the air, with the landing impact knocking Mario to the ground. With Mario stunned, Bowser took the opportunity to land a direct hit on Mario, sending him flying toward another pillar.

  
  


“Mario!” Luigi cried.

  
  


“He'll be fine.” Peach said calmly.

  
  


“You seem awfully calm about this whole thing.” Daisy said.

  
  


“You get used to it.”

  
  


Mario recovered midair, and grabbed onto the top of the pillar.

  
  


“Come back down here and fight, you coward!” Bowser yelled.

  
  


“I'd rather stay up here! The view is much nicer!” Mario replied.

  
  


“If you're not gonna come down from there, then I'll make you come down from there!”

  
  


Bowser took a running leap up to the pillar. By the time he made it to the top, Mario had already climbed back down to the bottom.

  
  


“Where did you go, you little pest?”

  
  


Bowser looked down to see Mario at the base of the pillar, knocking it down with his hammer.

  
  


“Uh, oh.” Bowser gulped as the pillar collapsed with him on top of it.

  
  


Bowser picked himself back up again, and let out a ferocious roar.

  
  


“That's it! Give me that treasure, or you're dead meat!”

  
  


Bowser began to breathe fire again, following Mario as he ran around him. Mario managed to outrun Bowser's flames, and grabbed hold of his tail. Mario spun around rapidly, swinging Bowser around him faster and faster.

  
  


“Let go of me, plumber!” Bowser demanded.

  
  


“If you insist!”

  
  


Mario released Bowser, sending him flying toward the tallest of the pillars. He hit it head on, and it crumbled to the ground, burying him again. This time, when he dug himself back out, he had no energy left to fight, and collapsed to the ground. With Bowser defeated, Mario turned to Kamek, who was now afraid.

  
  


“I believe you made a promise.” he said.

  
  


“Y-yes, of course.” Kamek shivered as he released Mario's team from the magical barrier.

  
  


Luigi, Peach, and Daisy ran up to congratulate Mario on his victory.

  
  


“Great job, Mario!” Luigi cheered.

  
  


“I knew you could do it.” Peach cheered.

  
  


“Of course he could do it! I wasn't worried a bit!” Daisy added.

  
  


“Mario... I'll defeat you some day.” Bowser growled, still lying on the ground.

  
  


“In case you were wondering, the only thing we found in that temple was this key.” Mario said, showing the key to Bowser, “If you hadn't been so quick to violence, I would have gladly explained that to you.”

  
  


“A key? I let myself get beat up over a stupid key? Get out of my sight, Mario.”

  
  


Mario's team left Bowser in the desert, making their way back to the Mushroom Kingdom. Kamek approached Bowser, to make sure he was fine.

  
  


“Sir, will you need any help? That was quite the beating you took there.”

  
  


“No, I'll be fine. I've been through worse.” Bowser grumbled as he sat up, “But that key, keys unlock stuff.”

  
  


“They tend to do that.”

  
  


“Mario's planning on using that key to get the real treasure! I'm not gonna give up that easily!”

  
  


“Persistent as ever, I see. Very well, I'll gather more information on their activities for you. For now, let's get you back to the castle.”


	4. Chapter 4

After a bit of wandering, Mario's team was able to make it out of the desert. Relieved to finally be free from the heat, they stopped to rest under a tree.

  
  


“It feels so nice to finally have some shade.” Peach said, “I never like traveling through that desert.”

  
  


“Let's not take too long sitting here.” Daisy reminded, “We've gotta find that magic guy before he can do any more damage!”

  
  


“I should actually tell the professor that we got the key, shouldn't I?” Luigi asked.

  
  


Luigi took the radio E. Gadd had given him from his pocket, and pressed a button on it to call him.

  
  


“Luigi, is that you?” the professor called through the radio, “I take it you found that second key?”

  
  


“You bet, Professor!”

  
  


“Excellent work! I wish I had another quest to send you all on, but I haven't made any new discoveries with that book yet. Take it easy for now, and I'll give you a call when I find something.”

  
  


Luigi put the radio back into his pocket, and stood up.

  
  


“So, it looks like we've got some free time on our hands.” Luigi said.

  
  


“We should make our way back to Toad Town and stock up on supplies.” Peach suggested, “Depending on what the Professor has for us next, we might be gone for a while.”

  
  


“We gotta go grocery shopping? Why can't we do anything fun with our free time?” Daisy objected.

  
  


“I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to do whatever we want after this whole thing is over.” Mario told her, “For now, we should make sure we're prepared for the road ahead.”

  
  


“Ugh, fine. I just hope something interesting happens before I die of boredom.”

  
  


The group made their way back to Toad Town. By now, word of Magivi's attack had reached the ears of everyone in town, and there was a feeling of uneasiness over the entire town.

  
  


“I've never seen Toad Town this quiet.” Mario said as they walked down the main street.

  
  


“I hope we can bring some good news to them soon. I hate to see the Toads like this.” Peach replied.

  
  


The group made their way to one of the many stores that lined the streets of the town. Once inside, they were greeted by the store's clerk.

  
  


“Princess Peach?” he exclaimed, “Welcome. What brings you here at a time like this?”

  
  


“We actually need to stock up on some supplies.”

  
  


“Wait, are you planning to go after the person who attacked the temple?”

  
  


“We sort of are, I guess.”

  
  


“Please, take as much as you need. We're all glad we have someone like you as the princess. Knowing you're protecting us will hopefully raise the spirits of everyone in town.”

  
  


“They sure looked like they needed some good news.”

  
  


Just then, a loud explosion could be heard from outside, shaking the building. Many of the Toads fled and hid in a panic.

  
  


“You just had to go and jinx it, didn't you?” Daisy huffed.

  
  


Everyone ran outside to see a large plume of smoke rising up from the area of the Star Sprite temple.

  
  


“Not again, come one everyone!” Mario ordered as he ran toward the temple.

  
  


At the temple, everything was in a state of chaos. Even more damage had been done to the exterior, with the doorway now caved in, covering part of the entrance. A Toad in robes noticed Mario and quickly ran up to him.

  
  


“Mario, it's terrible! It was Magivi, he's back!” the Toad screamed in panic.

  
  


“Woah, woah, calm down.” Mario told the Toad, “Now, tell me everything that happened.”

  
  


“We had just finished cleaning up from his last attack when he showed up again. He demanded that we tell him where the keys were.”

  
  


The rest of Mario's team caught up, and could see the destruction with their own eyes.

  
  


“I think I know what happened here.” Luigi said.

  
  


“He threatened to destroy the town if I didn't tell him how to get the keys.” the Toad continued, “I told him there was one in the the temple.”

  
  


“There was a key in the temple this entire time?” Daisy asked, “That would have made our lives so much easier!”

  
  


“It was in a part of the temple nobody but our highest members are allowed in. Magivi is already gone, and he took the key with him. However, there's something else in there that might be of use to you.”

  
  


“What's that?” Mario asked.

  
  


“I'm not entirely positive about it, but I believe it is ancient texts detailing where the Ascension Catalyst was sealed away. If you can use it to get there before him, you might have a chance to stop him.”

  
  


“We don't have a moment to lose then.”

  
  


Mario climbed over the debris blocking the entrance, and the rest of his team followed in. As they made their way down into the temple, it began to get darker, as all of the lights on the walls were destroyed.

  
  


“Hold on, this radio has a light built into it.” Luigi said, fumbling around in the dark until he could find the radio in his pocket.

  
  


Luigi pressed one of the buttons on the side of the radio, and a flashlight on its side lit up, allowing them to see where they were going as they descended deeper into the temple. Soon, they found themselves at a dead end, in a room with a single empty pedestal.

  
  


“This must have been where that key was kept.” Peach thought.

  
  


“It doesn't look like there's anything else down here. What are we supposed to do?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“Maybe there's some kind of secret lever around here that opens up a door.” Luigi thought as he leaned against the wall.

  
  


When Luigi leaned his hand on one of the stones in the wall, it pushed in. The wall began to shake, and it slid into the ground, revealing a secret passage deeper into the temple.

  
  


“What is it with these guys and putting puzzles in their temples?” Daisy wondered.

  
  


“I doubt we'll find the answer to that question, but maybe we'll find something else down here.” Mario said as he led everyone into the tunnel.

  
  


“How about you guys go on without me.” Luigi said, timidly, handing the radio to Mario, “I'll, uh, wait here in case Magivi comes back.”

  
  


“If you insist.” Mario laughed as he took the only source of light with him into the tunnel.

  
  


Without the flashlight, the room almost immediately became pitch black.

  
  


“On second thought, wait up guys!” Luigi screamed as he ran to catch up with Mario and the princesses.

  
  


As the team ventured further into the catacombs of the temple, they found themselves in front of a massive wall, lined with several scenes depicted in murals.

  
  


“Woah, what are these things?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“They're murals. It looks like they're telling some kind of story.” Mario read, “The writing underneath them is the same as that book, but maybe we can still interpret their meaning.”

  
  


Mario scanned the flashlight across the wall, and found the first of the murals. It depicted the Star Sprites surrounding a few other figures. A second image depicted these same figures with magical powers.

  
  


“It looks like the Star Sprites are granting powers to those people there.” Mario interpreted.

  
  


“I think those are the Star Mages.” Peach added.

  
  


“Star Mages?”

  
  


“I've read about something like this before. They were a group selected by the Star Sprites to act as protectors around the world on their behalf. There's not many of them anymore. They've all become secluded over the past several decades, and they refuse to speak to anyone.”

  
  


“Hold on, there some more stuff on this wall.”

  
  


The third image depicted one of the previous Star Mages, a human, bringing harm to others with their power. A fourth image depicting multiple Star Mages in battle against the evil Star Mage.

  
  


“It looks like one of them went rogue.” Luigi said, “You don't think..?”

  
  


“The Star Mages were quite powerful back when they were around, and a rogue Star Mage wouldn't have gotten very far if they had to fight the rest of them.” Peach explained.

  
  


“Hey guys, I found something!” Daisy's voice echoed from further down the tunnel, “It's too dark to see what it is, but I feel something here!”

  
  


“Don't touch a thing, Daisy!” Peach shouted, “We'll be right over!”

  
  


The rest of the team ran to catch up with Daisy. When they shined the flashlight on her, they found her standing in front of a stone tablet placed on a pedestal.

  
  


“This must have been what the Toad was talking about.” Luigi said, “But it's in that same language as that book.”

  
  


“We'll have to take it back to the Professor to translate it, won't we?” Peach grumbled.

  
  


“Hey, there's another one of those murals on this wall.” Daisy noticed.

  
  


Mario turned the flashlight to illuminate the back wall, revealing a fifth mural. It depicted several of the Star Mages lying on the ground, and the rogue Star Mage inside a small tower, surrounded by a round barrier. Everyone froze in fear of what they saw.

  
  


Mario gasped, “The rogue Star Mage... was Magivi?”

  
  


“They weren't able to defeat him, they could only imprison him! Just how powerful is he?” Peach asked.

  
  


“This guy we've been fighting is a rogue Star Mage?” Daisy exclaimed, “And you released him, Luigi?!”

  
  


“How was I supposed to know breaking that seal would release the most dangerous person on the entire planet?!”

  
  


“Luigi's right.” Mario replied, “There's no way he could have known this would happen. That's not important anymore. Look at what he was capable of, even without the Ascension Catalyst.”

  
  


“If we let him get to it, we're done for! We don't have a minute to lose! We need to get this to the Professor, now!” Peach ordered.

  
  


Peach grabbed the stone tablet from the pedestal, and the group hurried out of the temple, and back into the light of day. No sooner than they climbed over the rubble barricading the temple's entrance, the radio in Mario's hand began beeping loudly. Mario pressed the button on the radio to accept a call from Professor E. Gadd.

  
  


“Hello? Someone? Is anyone there?” he shouted from the radio.

  
  


“Professor, is something wrong?” Mario asked.

  
  


“That mage you're all chasing after, he's attacked my lab again! You must come at once! I'll explain everything when you get here!”

  
  


“Mario, what's going on?” Peach asked.

  
  


“We need to get to the Professor's lab right away!” Mario urged.

  
  


Mario's team ran as fast as they could to E. Gadd's lab. When they arrived, they found it in shambles. The door was blown off its hinges again, books were scattered across the floor, and lab equipment was broken. The professor was nowhere to be found.

  
  


“Does this guy have a thing against doors or something?” Luigi asked, looking at the broken door.

  
  


“Professor? Are you here?” Mario called.

  
  


A hatch in the back of the lab opened, and the professor climbed out when he saw Mario's team.

  
  


“Thank goodness you're here, everyone!” he greeted them, “I don't have much good news to give you, though.”

  
  


“Professor, what happened, and where's Magivi?” Peach asked.

  
  


“That's the thing. He left, and he took that book with him.”

  
  


“Hold on, doesn't he also not know what's in that book?”

  
  


“You'd be right under any other circumstances, but he also got away with the notes I had taken on translating the book.”

  
  


“So you're telling us he knows everything he needs to get the Ascension Catalyst?”

  
  


“Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that. You see, I never finished translating everything in the book. At worst, he could finish the job himself, which could take a while.”

  
  


“So what are we gonna do now?” Daisy asked, “I hope you've got a plan better than sit around and hope he doesn't find the Catalyst.”

  
  


“I do actually have a bit of good news. I made myself a copy of the book in case something ever happened to it. Quite a smart move, I know.”

  
  


“So we might be able to find the next key before Magivi?” Mario asked.

  
  


“Actually, I just found the location of the next key before he attacked. Er, sort of. You see, there's a total of four keys to this thing, and one of them was stolen from the planet nearly a thousand years ago.”

  
  


“If we have the key from the desert, and Magivi has the key from Yoshi's Island and the temple, then that means the last key is in space!” Peach concluded.

  
  


“Let him mess around up there, he still needs to come back here for the last key.” Daisy said.

  
  


“Daisy, I've been to space. There's no telling what else he might find up there. If he came back with anything more powerful than what he has now, we're doomed.”

  
  


“How are we supposed to get to space?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“I know just up the road the Toad Brigade runs a spaceport that they use for their interstellar missions.” E. Gadd said, “With Princess Peach along, you should have no trouble getting permission to borrow one of their spaceships.”

  
  


“Wait, we actually get to go to space? This is so cool!” Daisy cheered.

  
  


“Before you go, take this.” E. Gadd said, handing Peach a folder, “This is the copy of the book I made, as well as a copy of my translation notes. It has everything you'll need to read the book. Now go stop Magivi, I'm counting on you all!”

  
  


“We won't let you down, Professor!” Mario reassured, “Now let’s get going, everyone!”

  
  


Mario’s team hurried to the spaceport as quickly as they could. Alone in the lab, the professor looked at the destruction around him.

  
  


“Why does this always happen to me?” he asked himself.

  
  


Once at the spaceport, Mario and his team were shocked to find that Magivi was already there. Several Toad guards lay on the ground, defeated while he was tearing apart the mushroom-shaped starships.

  
  


“I'd like to see Mario try to stop me if he can't even get into space! Imagine the look on his face right now as he realizes he can't possibly- What the!? How did you get here so fast?”

  
  


Magivi panicked when he realized Mario's team had gotten to the spaceport before he could escape. Giving himself a moment to regain his composure, he rose back up into the air, and pulled the book out from his robe.

  
  


“Looking for something?” he taunted, “I'm afraid you're too late!”

  
  


“Magivi! We know what you did a hundred years ago!” Mario shouted, “You betrayed the Star Sprites!”

  
  


“So that walking fungus snitched on me, did he? Yeah, so I was a Star Mage. I'll tell you what, those Star Sprites were so uptight about everything we did. It was about time someone tried to put them in their place!”

  
  


“If anyone needs to be put in their place, it's you!” Daisy shouted.

  
  


“I don't have time to talk, Princess. I've got a world to run! I'll see you all soon! In the meantime, why don't you stay down here and play with your toys!”

  
  


Magivi waved his wand around the destroyed scraps of the starships, forming them into a large, misshapen robot. He then climbed into one of the remaining starships and took off into space.

  
  


“Coward! Always running away and leaving something else to fight for you!” Daisy shouted as the starship took off.

  
  


“This thing isn't more than a bucket of bolts!” Mario shouted, “Peach, Daisy, leave this one to us!”

  
  


“Come on, Daisy. Let's get somewhere safe.” Peach said, taking her away from the action.

  
  


“Aw, why can't I fight it too?” Daisy grumbled.

  
  


Mario and Luigi equipped their hammers and stood ready to attack the robot. The robot responded by raising its large, metallic hand. The hand created a powerful magnetic pull that pulled the hammers right from the brothers' hands. The robot then lifted its other arm, which had a rocket engine attached on the end. It fired the rocket toward Mario. He jumped out of the way, but Luigi, who was behind him, was hit by the rocket and carried into the air. In the air, Luigi was able to angle the rocket to send it on a collision course with the robot. Right before the impact, Luigi jumped off the rocket and landed next to Mario.

  
  


“Nice job, Luigi!”

  
  


“Thanks Mario, but we still don't have our hammers! Jumping on it won't hurt it, and we can't keep relying on counterattacks to take this thing down!”

  
  


“Just don't get hit for now, I'll think of something!”

  
  


The robot opened its midsection to reveal the power generator from one of the destroyed starships. It then fired a barrage of energy blasts out of the generator. With no means of countering this attack, Mario and Luigi had to dodge the attacks until the robot had depleted itself of power. Having to stop and recharge, the robot's electromagnetic hand powered down, and released the hammers.

  
  


“Now's our chance, Luigi! We can get our hammers back while it's recharging!”

  
  


Luigi ran in to grab both hammers, and tossed one of them to Mario.

  
  


Peach had taken Daisy to a safe distance where they could spectate Mario and Luigi fighting the robot. Eager to help the fight, Daisy tried to run, but was stopped by Peach.

  
  


“Let me go, they need my help!” Daisy demanded as she fought against Peach.

  
  


“Daisy, they've handled far worse before. You don’t need to do anything.”

  
  


“No! I'm not gonna just sit around and let them fight that thing alone!”

  
  


“Daisy, stop!”

  
  


Daisy pulled away from Peach and ran toward the robot. She found a pile of scrap parts, and began digging through it.

  
  


“There's gotta be something in here to shut this thing down. Take this, you bucket of bolts!”

  
  


Daisy threw anything she could at the robot, who was still recharging its energy. One of these objects was a battery, which landed on the back of the power generator, charging the robot up to full power.

  
  


“Uh oh.” Daisy gulped, realizing the mistake she had made.

  
  


With the extra power, the robot began charging up a more powerful energy blast.

  
  


“Daisy, what are you doing!” Mario cried, “Are you trying to get us killed?”

  
  


Before the robot could release its attack, a large branch fell on it from the tree above, temporarily stunning it. Peach leaped out from the tree, and landed onto the back of the robot, ripping the battery from the generator. This was not unnoticed by the robot, and its attention was now on Peach. She threw the stone tablet and the book translation to Daisy, grabbed a spear from one of the fallen guards, and prepared to fight the robot.

  
  


“Peach what are you doing? I thought you said-”

  
  


“You all need to get to that starship now! I'll hold this thing off!” Peach ordered.

  
  


Mario and Luigi took Peach's order, and ran around to robot to one of the remaining starships.

  
  


“What? I'm not leaving without you!” Daisy cried.

  
  


“Don't worry about me, I'll be fine! You need to stop Magivi!”

  
  


“Daisy, come on!” Luigi shouted.

  
  


Daisy looked back to Peach one more time. Peach nodded to Daisy, who ran to the starship. As they took off into space, she could only watch as Peach fought against the robot, alone.


	5. Chapter 5

Once in space, Daisy couldn't contain her anxiety.

  
  


“We can't just leave Peach down there to fight that thing! We have to go back to help her!” she wept as she paced frantically around the starship.

  
  


Luigi saw she was upset, and tried to calm her, “You should relax, Daisy. If I know Peach, she'll find some way out of that situation.”

  
  


“This is all my fault! If I hadn't been such a screw-up, then we wouldn't even be in this mess!”

  
  


“Mario, do you have any plans for where to go from here?” Luigi asked, “We don't really have much to work with if we want to catch up to Magivi.”

  
  


“I've got something in mind. We're going to the one person out here that can help us.”

  
  


Mario input a series of commands into the starship's computer and it changed course, taking them deep into space. Daisy sat down to wait out the ride. After what felt like forever to her, a bright, blue light shone through the window of the starship. The group looked out the window to see a much larger, and very familiar starship. On the Comet Observatory, Rosalina was surprised by the starship as it landed.

  
  


“A visitor?” she thought out loud, “Who could that possibly be?”

  
  


She was shocked to see Mario, Luigi, and Daisy exit the starship. After closing the hatch on the ship, Daisy's face lit up the moment she saw Rosalina.

  
  


“Rosalina!” she cheered as she ran up to hug her friend.

  
  


“Mario? Luigi? Daisy? This is quite the surprise. Let me get you all settled in first, and then I can ask what you're all doing here.”

  
  


Rosalina led them from the landing pad through the Observatory. It was as welcoming and homey as ever, and the many Lumas seemed to take an interest in their surprise guests.

  
  


“Do you live here?” Daisy asked, “This place is amazing!”

  
  


“Yes, this is my home, as well as the Lumas'. Sorry it's a bit messy, I didn't expect to have any visitors.”

  
  


“Messy? Are you kidding? This place looks great!”

  
  


Rosalina brought everyone into the kitchen, where he sat them down around the table while she prepared tea for everyone. Once it had finished, she poured a cup for each of her guests while she began asking her questions.

  
  


“I imagine you haven't come here just to pay me a surprise visit. So tell me, is there something you need my help for?”

  
  


“It's a bit of a long story,” Mario explained, “So I should probably start from the beginning.”

  
  


Mario then narrated to Rosalina the events that had led them to her. Magivi's release, the Ascension Catalyst, the three keys that had been collected, and their journey taking them into space while they had to leave Peach behind. Rosalina listened with a concerned interest throughout Mario's description.

  
  


“Magivi…” Rosalina mumbled under her breath.

  
  


“So you see, Rosalina. We're not quite sure what to do from here if we want to have any chance of catching up to Magivi.”

  
  


“It is certainly quite the problem you've gotten yourselves into. I'll offer you any help I can.”

  
  


“So what do you think we should do next?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“I would like to take a look at that book you mentioned. The information we need is likely in there.”

  
  


“You're welcome to try.” Daisy said as she handed Rosalina the folder containing the untranslated book, “The language is complete nonsense.”

  
  


Rosalina looked through the pages in the folder, and she was quite surprised by what she found.

  
  


“This language, it's... It's the same language that I learned and spoke when I was a child!”

  
  


“What? What are the odds of that?” Mario asked in surprise.

  
  


“I haven't seen anything like this for over three hundred years.”

  
  


“You can still translate it, right?”

  
  


“It might take me a bit of time, but I should be able to figure everything out for you. If you would give me some time alone, I would like to go over this, as well as that stone tablet you mentioned before. As soon as I find what we need, I will let you know.”

  
  


“Thank you so much, Rosalina. You're a lifesaver!” Luigi said.

  
  


Mario and Luigi left to leave Rosalina to translate the book for them. Rosalina was about to leave as well, but she turned around and saw Daisy slumped over the table, stirring her tea with her finger.

  
  


“Daisy, is something wrong?” Rosalina asked.

  
  


“I'm fine. I'm just tired from the ride over here.”

  
  


“I can tell something is wrong. You're my friend, Daisy. I want to help you.”

  
  


Daisy sighed, “It's Peach. It was my fault that she was left behind. I did something stupid when I wanted to help, and everything was ruined.”

  
  


“As contradictory as it might sound, sometimes the best thing you can do to help is staying back and supporting from the sidelines.”

  
  


“What's that supposed to mean?”

  
  


“When Bowser attacked my ship during the Star Festival. I would have absolutely gone after him if I could have, but I couldn't leave the Lumas by themselves. They would have been completely helpless if we got attacked. I let Mario and his friends do their job while I stayed back to keep the Lumas safe.”

  
  


“Yeah, but that's different. We didn't have any Lumas to watch back home. How can I help if there's nothing for me to do?”

  
  


“If you find that Mario and Luigi have everything under control, then there's no reason for you to try to go in and help them. If anything, it would only increase the risk of somebody getting hurt. You don't need to be the hero every time.”

  
  


“Thanks for talking to me, and for the advice.”

  
  


“I'm glad that I could help, especially for a friend.”

  
  


Daisy's frown turned into a smile, and she stood up, as cheerful as usual.

  
  


“Now if you excuse me, I should get to reading through this book. I'll let you all know when I find something.”

  
  


“Sure thing, Rosalina!”

  
  


Daisy got up and left the kitchen. Rosalina read through the book that had been given to her. Later she found Mario's team out by their starship, and presented them with the information she found.

  
  


“Did you figure out what was in that book?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“I read through all of the relevant information in the book, and I was able to find the location of the fourth and final key.”

  
  


“Alright! Where is it?” Daisy cheered.

  
  


“To my knowledge, the key is in a space station constructed by the alien race that stole the key. I happen to know where the station is.”

  
  


“I doubt they'll let us just walk in and take the key.” Mario thought.

  
  


“Actually, the space station is abandoned. You see, they disappeared from the cosmos hundreds of years ago, even before I became the mother of the Lumas. Nobody knows where they went, they simply vanished.”

  
  


“So we can just walk in and grab the key? That's a stroke of luck right there!” Luigi said.

  
  


“So long as Magivi hasn't beaten us to it yet.”

  
  


“If Magivi left in one of those mushroom starships like you did, the Comet Observatory can easily outpace it. We will depart right away.”

  
  


With a wave of her wand, Rosalina transformed the Comet Observatory into a starship, sending it on a course to the space station. Meanwhile, Wario and Waluigi had stolen a starship from the spaceport, and were on a mission of their own.

  
  


“Hey, why do we even need to go to space in the first place?” Waluigi asked, “Can't we just ambush Mario and his buddies when they come back, and take that thing for ourselves?”

  
  


“You heard what they said about that Catalyst thing, it's really powerful! If we wait for Mario to come back with it, there's no chance we'd be able to steal it from him!”

  
  


“You know, if that thing is as powerful as they say, why don't we try to take over the world instead of selling it? We could have everything we ever wanted if we owned the world!”

  
  


“We'll worry about what we do with that thing later. Just shut up and stick to the plan for now.”

  
  


“Always throwing out my ideas, never lets me run the show.” Waluigi grumbled under his breath.

  
  


After a long journey through space, the Comet Observatory finally stopped at its destination: a massive space station orbiting a gas giant planet.

  
  


“Is that the space station?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“That thing's huge!” Daisy added, “How are we ever gonna find one key in that whole thing?”

  
  


“The people that built this station no longer exist, so there should be plenty of time for us to search for the key.” Rosalina explained.

  
  


“At least as long as Magivi doesn't show up, so we better go going!” Mario said.

  
  


Mario's team boarded the mushroom starship to get closer to the space station. They found a docking port on the side of the station, and once they were inside, found that the station was capable of generating its own gravitational pull.

  
  


“This place is still functioning?” Luigi asked, “I thought you said this place was abandoned!”

  
  


“The whole thing's probably automated.” Daisy replied, “Rosalina said they were really advanced.”

  
  


The group ventured further into the space station to find a large room. The walls were a reflective gray, with lights lining them from the ground to the ceiling. Several airlocks in the room led to other places on the station, with the signs above them written in an alien language.

  
  


“This must be the central hub of the station.” Rosalina thought, “It seems a bit too tidy in here for something that was abandoned hundreds of years ago.”

  
  


A faint buzzing sound echoed through the room, followed by mechanical clatter. The whole group froze in their tracks

  
  


“I can't have been the only one to hear that.” Daisy shivered.

  
  


“It appears we aren't the only ones here.” Rosalina said as she drew her wand.

  
  


Mario and Luigi prepared themselves for battle, and Daisy waited with anticipation for what they were about to fight. The sounds became louder and louder, until from one of the airlocks, a giant mechanical beetle charged right at the team. It was a light gray, matching the color of the walls, with a white carapace, and a pair of black pincers. It stopped just short of Mario and Luigi, and it let out a loud, mechanical screech.

  
  


“What is that thing?!” Daisy asked.

  
  


“It's probably the one responsible for keeping this place running for all these centuries!” Rosalina replied, “One of its jobs must be to deal with intruders, including us!”

  
  


“Nothing we haven't dealt with before, Luigi!” Mario said, “We'll take this thing down no problem!”

  
  


“Mario, help!” Luigi cried.

  
  


Mario looked to see Luigi had been grabbed by the beetle, and it was holding him above itself with its pincers.

  
  


Mario sighed, “Seriously? We haven't even started.”

  
  


Mario ran up to the beetle, and hit it on the head with his hammer. The beetle released Luigi from its grip, and he jumped onto its hard shell. However, he slid right off, and the beetle remained unharmed.

  
  


“Jumping on its shell won't do anything, Luigi! We'll need to hit the less protected parts of the beetle.”

  
  


“If we hit it at the same time, maybe we can flip it over.”

  
  


Mario and Luigi positioned themselves side-by-side in front of the beetle. When it charged at them, they both swung at its underside, flipping it over.

  
  


“Great thinking, Luigi! Quick, while it's stuck!”

  
  


Mario and Luigi climbed on top of the beetle, and hit its underbelly with their hammers, causing it to crack. A blue liquid started to leak from the cracks. The beetle flipped itself back over, and spread its wings.

  
  


“That thing can fly?!” Luigi shouted, “How are we gonna get it down?”

  
  


“To be completely honest, we should have expected that.” Mario said, “But it looks like we did some damage, let's bring it down!”

  
  


Meanwhile, from the back of the room, Daisy and Rosalina were watching the brothers fight. Rosalina could see that Daisy was getting anxious to join in.

  
  


“Remember what we talked about Daisy.” she reminded her.

  
  


“Yeah, I know, but I wanna help them!”

  
  


“They've got the fight under control, there's no point giving that beetle any extra targets to hit.”

  
  


Suddenly, the airlock leading to the docking bay opened. From it stepped Wario and Waluigi, much to Daisy’s surprise.

  
  


“Sorry we were late, everyone!” Wario laughed.

  
  


“”Sorry we were late?”” Waluigi insulted, “Is that really the best line you could come up with?”

  
  


“Oh great it's you again.” Daisy groaned.

  
  


“What can I say?” Waluigi teased, “We're not ones to back down from a challenge.”

  
  


“I'm sorry, but who exactly are you?” Rosalina asked.

“Of course, Wario is the one everyone remembers. Nobody ever remembers poor Waluigi!” Waluigi whined, “Do you have any idea how tiring it gets to-”

  
  


Rosalina interrupted, “No, I meant to say that I don't believe I've met either of you, but I can tell that whatever you're here for can't be good.”

  
  


“Oh nothing too important.” Wario chuckled, “Just a little get rich quick scheme. Now if you ladies could just step aside, we'll get what we're here for, and be on our way.”

  
  


“Wait, how did you even find us out here?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“It was quite the genius move, really.” Waluigi explained, “We put a listening device in that old Professor's lab. When we found out you losers were going to space, we snuck into that spaceport before anyone showed up, and planted tracking devices on all the spaceships.”

  
  


“Real shame you went through all that just to get beat up!” Daisy taunted, “Yeah, get burned!”

  
  


“Save the one liners for later, Daisy.” Rosalina said as she drew her wand, “Let us take care of these petty thieves first.”

  
  


“Finally, I get to do some fighting!” Daisy shouted, “Let's do it!”

  
  


“If it's a fight you girls want, then it's a fight you'll get!” Wario shouted as he lobbed a bomb toward the girls.

  
  


Daisy reacted by catching the bomb out of the air, and throwing it back to Wario. Rosalina followed up by summoning a volley of Star Bits, sending them flying toward Wario and Waluigi.

  
  


“You girls are tougher than you look, but we're only getting started!” Wario shouted, “Waluigi, you're up!”

  
  


Wario picked up Waluigi and threw into the air. Waluigi dove from the air, landing on Rosalina and knocking her down. 

Rosalina picked herself up, and brushed herself off.

  
  


“Hold on, where'd Waluigi go?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“Looking for someone?” Waluigi taunted from above.

  
  


The girls looked up to see Waluigi hanging from a cable that ran across the ceiling of the room. From above, he dropped a cluster of bombs. Daisy and Rosalina quickly jumped out of the way as they exploded on the floor.

  
  


“Daisy, are you alright?” Rosalina asked.

  
  


“Never been better!”

  
  


Waluigi dropped from the cable, and threw one more bomb toward Rosalina. She reacted by using her magic to redirect it away from herself. Seeing Rosalina use this magic gave Daisy an idea.

  
  


“Hold on, Rosalina! I've got a plan!”

  
  


Daisy whispered her plan to Rosalina, as to not reveal it to Wario and Waluigi.

  
  


“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Rosalina asked concernedly.

  
  


“Trust me on this, it'll work. Now let's give them what they deserve!”

  
  


“Hey girls!” Wario taunted, “Are you done with your little tea party over there?”

  
  


“Tea party, ha!” Waluigi laughed, “That's a good one, Wario!”

  
  


“Alright, here we go!” Rosalina said as she used her magic to lift Daisy into the air.

  
  


Once Daisy was in the air, Rosalina launched her toward Wario and Waluigi at a high speed. She ricocheted off of Waluigi, and jumped into Wario before landing back on her feet near Rosalina.

  
  


“Boom! That's how it's done!” she cheered.

  
  


“I'm impressed, that actually worked.”

  
  


“I can't believe I'm saying this, but these girls are putting up a real fight.” Wario grumbled.

  
  


“Alright, that's it!” Waluigi yelled, “It's time for the big one!”

  
  


Waluigi pulled out a larger, much more powerful bomb, and hurled it toward the girls.

  
  


“Waluigi are you insane?!” Wario shouted, “What do you think you're doing using that thing inside?!”

  
  


Daisy shielded her face as the bomb exploded, filling the room with smoke. When the dust cleared, she found that she was completely unharmed, as Rosalina placed a magical barrier around herself and Daisy. Wario and Waluigi, on the other hand, were covered in soot from the blast, and just about defeated.

  
  


“This ain't worth the effort anymore, Waluigi. Let's scram!”

  
  


Wario and Waluigi quickly escaped through the same airlock they had entered.

  
  


“Yeah, you better run!” Daisy shouted, “How does it feel to get beat by a girl?!”

  
  


“Show a little humility, Daisy, won't you?”

  
  


Daisy and Rosalina heard a loud crash, and turned around to see Mario and Luigi standing triumphantly over a destroyed mechanical beetle.

  
  


“It looks like you have a battle of your own to deal with.” Mario said.

  
  


“Yeah, it was great! We showed them, right Rosalina!”

  
  


Rosalina laughed, “We sure did. Thank you for staying back to help, Daisy. I might not have been able to fight them two-on-one.”

  
  


“So, we should probably get to finding that key, right?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“You mean this?” Luigi replied as he pulled a large, blue key from the remains of the mechanical beetle.

  
  


“The key was in the beetle?” Mario said, shocked, “That makes our job a whole lot easier.”

  
  


“That means our work here is done.” Rosalina added, “Let's get back to the Comet Observatory.

  
  


Meanwhile, in Wario and Waluigi's stolen starship, the dysfunctional duo were in an argument over the outcome of their recent fight.

  
  


“I told you the big bomb wasn't safe to use indoors!” Wario grumbled.

  
  


“What else did you expect me to do?! It's not like we were gonna beat them without it!”

  
  


“Whatever, I'll figure out another way to get that Ascension Thingy.”

  
  


“You know, with how much Mario and his buddies have to do to get this thing, it's gotta be pretty powerful.”

  
  


“That means it's probably also extremely valuable! I could sell it for millions! No, billions! I'd be the richest guy in the world with that thing!”

  
  


“I still think we should use it to try to take over the world. That'd be way better than a pile of cash.”


	6. Chapter 6

Back on the Comet Observatory, Rosalina found Daisy sitting alone in the library.

  
  


“Daisy, I just wanted to say you did a great job helping back on the space station.”

  
  


“Thanks,” Daisy sniffled, “I just wish Peach was around to see it.”

  
  


“I'm sure Peach would be very proud of you right now. You'll have a lot to tell her when you get back home.”

  
  


Daisy began to cry, “You don't understand! We left her down there alone! She might be dead now because of what I did!”

  
  


Rosalina hugged Daisy to comfort her, “Daisy, I understand how you feel right now. You're concerned for your friend, but you need to have hope. I know Peach too, and I know she would be able to find a way out of there.”

  
  


Daisy wiped the tears from her eyes, “Maybe you're right, and Peach is still waiting for me. If that's the case, then we need to win this battle, so I can go back home to see her again!”

  
  


“There's the Daisy I know, always ready for action!”

  
  


“So do you know what our next plan is? We only have half of the keys.”

  
  


“I spent some time going over those things you brought with you, and I've found the location of the Ascension Catalyst. I can take us there whenever you're ready.”

  
  


“Why don't we go there now? If we hurry, we could set up an ambush!”

  
  


Luigi ran into the library in a panic.

  
  


“Daisy, Rosalina! I was looking in one of the telescopes, and I found something you need to see!”

  
  


Luigi led the girls into one of the Observatory's domes, where Mario was already waiting for them.

  
  


“What did you find?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“Have a look for yourself.” Mario said.

  
  


Daisy looked into the telescope. It was pointed toward a distant planet, with the planet's surface clearly visible. On the planet she saw a mushroom-shaped spacecraft had crashed in a forest, surrounded by several fallen trees.

  
  


“No way! Rosalina you gotta see this!”

  
  


Rosalina looked in the telescope and saw the same thing Daisy had seen.

  
  


“You see that starship?” Mario asked, “That's the one Magivi took!”

  
  


“That's an uncharted planet. How could Magivi have crashed all the way out there? It doesn't make any sense.” she wondered.

  
  


“We should see if we can recover the stuff he stole.” Luigi suggested, “This might be our only chance!”

  
  


“Hmm, while it is possible that he survived the crash, I'm not seeing any signs of activity there. Luigi is right, this could be our chance to stop him.”

  
  


“What are we waiting for? Let's go!” Daisy said,

  
  


Rosalina transformed the Comet Observatory into a starship again, and took off for the uncharted planet, hoping to use this sudden opportunity to finally put a stop to Magivi. Once at the planet, the Comet Observatory landed in a small clearing in a dense forest.

  
  


“Alright everyone, we should be close to Magivi's crash site.” Mario said, “Keep an eye out for any fallen trees. There were plenty of them near where he crashed.”

  
  


“After those two thieves attacked us back on the space station, I think it would be best for me to stay back and keep watch over the Observatory.” Rosalina suggested.

  
  


“Sounds like a plan!” Luigi replied, “Hey Daisy, do you still have that communicator E. Gadd gave us?”

  
  


“Sure do! Rosalina, do you have something that can talk with this?”

  
  


“It's a radio, so I should be able to talk to you from the Observatory. If anything happens, I want you to call me immediately.”

  
  


Rosalina waved goodbye to Mario's team as they ventured into the forest. Mario led the group, while Luigi and Daisy followed close behind him. Daisy gripped the radio in her hand tightly, ready to use it at a moment's notice. They stopped when they came to a wall of fallen trees.

  
  


“I bet that's where the spaceship crashed.” Daisy whispered.

  
  


The group climbed around the trees to see the mushroom starship partially buried in the ground, with no sign of anyone around. Mario and Luigi got closer to the starship to check for the stolen items, or even Magivi himself. To their surprise, the starship was completely empty, as if it had never been used.

  
  


“Hold on, where's the keys?” Luigi asked, “You'd think they'd still be in here.”

  
  


“That's not the only thing missing.” Mario said.

  
  


Suddenly, a beam of light wrapped itself around Mario and Luigi's legs, holding them in place. Daisy panicked and ducked into a nearby bush.

  
  


“If I knew it was that easy to lure you into a trap, I would have just given you invitations to a housewarming party!” Magivi laughed arrogantly as he flew out from behind the tree cover.

  
  


“Magivi!” Mario shouted.

  
  


“I'm glad to see your memory is still intact. Although I'm afraid it won't be for long, if you know what I mean!” Magivi laughed, “Oh before I forget, thank you for bringing these to me!”

  
  


Magivi waved his wand. The tablet and keys that Mario had held onto for safekeeping floated away from Mario and toward Magivi.

  
  


“No! You won't get away with this!” Luigi shouted, “For the sake of everyone you've harmed in your power hungry ways, we will defeat you!”

  
  


“You think this is just about me wanting power, don't you? Let me ask you this: If all of your allies turned on you, what would you do? Would you want to return the favor to those that had betrayed you?”

  
  


“You were the one that betrayed the Star Sprites when you used the powers they granted you selfishly! You were too cowardly to willingly accept the punishment for your actions, and look where it got you!” Mario responded.

  
  


Meanwhile, Daisy was listening to the discussion between the Mario brothers and Magivi, waiting for Rosalina to come to their aid.

  
  


“Come on, Rosalina, hurry up.” she whispered.

  
  


She peeked over the bush, and could see Magivi wasn't listening to the brothers, and it would only be a matter of time before it was too late.

  
  


“They need my help for real, this time! I've gotta do something!” she thought as she looked around, “There's gotta be something I can do to get the jump on him.”

  
  


Daisy snuck out from behind the bush and started climbing one of the trees. She managed to balance herself above Magivi on one of the branches. She positioned herself directly above Magivi, and took a deep breath,

  
  


“I can do this.” she told herself confidently.

  
  


“Alright, this is clearly going nowhere.” Magivi grinned, “Time to end this!”

  
  


Magivi began charging up a powerful attack with his wand. Mario and Luigi were helpless as they struggled in their magical bindings.

  
  


“Don't even bother trying to escape, it's no use!”

  
  


“Not if I can help it!” Daisy shouted as she jumped from the tree.

  
  


Magivi looked up to see Daisy falling, and landing directly on top of him. The impact caused him to lose his focus and stop charging the attack. Magivi pointed his wand at Daisy, and levitated her into the air.

  
  


“You little pest! I promise you for every bit of pain those brothers suffer, you'll suffer tenfold!”

  
  


Before Magivi could do anything, he was interrupted again by a magical blast hitting him in the face. He was caught off guard, and dropped Daisy to the ground. Rosalina emerged from the trees, flying as fast as she could to her team's rescue.

  
  


“Rosalina?!” Magivi exclaimed, “That's my cue to leave!”

  
  


“Rosalina!” Mario, Luigi, and Daisy cheered in unison.

  
  


Magivi dropped to the ground, and scrambled into the starship. Surprisingly, the starship was still functional, and began to take off. Rosalina waved her want at Mario and Luigi, freeing them from Magivi's binding trap. She then flew down to check on Daisy.

  
  


“Are you alright?”

  
  


“Yeah, I'm fine, but Magivi's got away with the keys!”

  
  


The group could only watch as Magivi escaped into space with the tablet and all four keys.

  
  


“Thank you Daisy, you saved us back there.” Mario said.

  
  


“Yeah, we owe you one.” Luigi added.

  
  


“I wasn't able to stop him though. What do we do now?”

  
  


“Daisy, you did the best you could have done in that situation.” Rosalina assured her, “I should have known he would have tried to set up a trap. I should have gone with you.”

  
  


“Not much we can do about that now, is there?” Mario added, “We need to go after Magivi before he gets to the Ascension Catalyst!”

  
  


“Hold on, how come Magivi knew Rosalina's name? We haven't seen him before since we got to space.” Luigi realized.

  
  


“I suppose I should explain. I was given my powers and wand by the Star Sprites to assist me in raising the Lumas.”

  
  


“Rosalina, you're a Star Mage?!” Daisy asked in shock.

  
  


“Not quite. I was never officially part of the Star Mages, but I knew some of them. I suppose they were the closest thing I had to friends before I met all of you.”

  
  


“And Magivi was one of them?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“We were acquainted with each other. You probably know that the Star Mages rarely show their faces anymore, right? After Magivi went rogue, people lost trust in the Star Mages, and they all decided to seclude themselves.”

  
  


“Why don't we ask the Star Mages you were friends with to help?” Daisy asked.

  
  


“When Magivi went rogue, he killed a few of the Star Mages in battle before they could imprison him. The ones he killed were my friends.”

  
  


“Rosalina, I'm so sorry to hear that.” Luigi consoled.

  
  


“Don't worry Rosalina, you've still got us!” Daisy said, trying to cheer her friend up.

  
  


“Thank you Daisy. Come on, we should get back to the Observatory. We need to prepare ourselves for the coming battle.”


	7. Chapter 7

Later on, back aboard the Comet Observatory, Daisy was wandering around when she noticed Rosalina sitting in the library.

  
  


“Hey, Rosalina.” she whispered, “Mario, Luigi, and I are ready, so we can go whenever you're ready.”

  
  


“Yes, of course. I will take us there in a moment.”

  
  


Daisy stopped for a moment before speaking again.

  
  


“I'm sorry about what happened to your friends.”

  
  


“Thank you Daisy, but it's not them I am concerned about. I've already mourned them. I'm concerned about you.”

  
  


“Me? Why's that?”

  
  


“You see, the universe operates on a series of cycles. Things repeat, although never quite the same way as before. I'm concerned that this fight is going to be like one of those cycles.”

  
  


“I see what you're saying. You're afraid that because you lost your friends to Magivi before, it's gonna happen again?”

  
  


“Exactly. I know I shouldn't worry, but I just can't escape the thought.”

  
  


“Wasn't it you who told me to have hope? If we've made it this far, we can do anything!”

  
  


Rosalina smiled, “You're right, I did tell you that. I've always liked your optimism. Come on, let's go.”

  
  


“Rosalina before we go...” Daisy paused for a moment, “I want to thank you for helping me with my own problems. Now let's go make him pay!”

  
  


Deep in space, far from any stars or planets, Magivi's starship landed on an altar placed atop a lone asteroid. As he walked past several dark stone pillars, he approached a magical barrier with four colored locks. He pulled one of the keys from his robe and laughed.

  
  


“At long last, I've found you. A hundred years I waited for this moment, and it's finally paying off!”

  
  


Before he could place the key into the first lock, he was interrupted when a bright blue light suddenly appeared behind him. He turned around to see the Comet Observatory on the asteroid, with Mario's team running to stop him.

  
  


“This is as far as you go, Magivi!” Mario shouted, “We stop you here and now!”

  
  


“Oh great, you again. I should have expected you'd know where to find me.”

  
  


“You will pay for what you've done, Magivi.” Rosalina said as she prepared for battle.

  
  


“Rosalina, I see you've found yourself some new friends. It's a shame I'll have to do to them what I did to your old ones. I don't see why you've gotten yourself involved in this. It's not like you or those little stars you call a family would be affected by what I'm doing.”

  
  


“Do not even think about insulting my friends and family like that! You've gone far enough! We will strike you down where you stand!”

  
  


“If it's a fight you want, then it's a fight you'll get!”

  
  


Magivi drew his wand and prepared for battle, but before anyone could do anything, another mushroom starship crashed into the asteroid.

  
  


“Oh great, what is it now?!” Magivi yelled, “Can't you see we were in the middle of something?!”

  
  


From the starship, Bowser emerged much to everyone's surprise.

  
  


“Sorry I'm late, everyone!” he chuckled.

  
  


“Bowser?!” Mario's team all exclaimed unison.

  
  


“Yeah, I know you didn't expect to see me show up, but did you really think I would pass up a chance to fight for the fate of the world?”

  
  


“Wait, how did you know what was going on?” Luigi asked.

  
  


“Let's just say I have friends.”

  
  


Peach then climbed out of the starship. Upon seeing their friend they had thought to be long gone, Mario, Luigi, and Daisy all ran up to hug her.

  
  


“Peach, you're alright!” Daisy cried, “I didn't think I'd ever see you again!”

  
  


“I didn't think I'd see you either.” Peach said, “That robot almost had me, but then Bowser of all people showed up out of nowhere and took the thing out.”

  
  


“I'll bet you never thought I'd be the one saving you! When she told me what you guys were doing, I decided we would go up here and help you out.”

  
  


“You? Helping me?” Mario asked, “That's something I never thought I'd hear from you.”

  
  


“I'm not doing this for you, Mario. I just don't want that floating chump over there taking over the world.”

  
  


Magivi laughed, “I hate to break up the family reunion over here, but you're all in way over your head. If the Star Mages could only imprison me, then none of you will even stand a chance!”

  
  


“This is it everyone, it's now or never!” Mario shouted as he leapt toward Magivi.

  
  


Magivi reacted to Mario beginning the fight by protecting himself with a magic barrier. Mario bounced off the barrier, and landed on the ground. Magivi was unharmed, and he retaliated by slinging a fireball toward Mario's team. Bowser jumped in the way of it, and blocked the attack with his shell.

  
  


Bowser chuckled, “He can dish it, but let's see if he can take it!”

  
  


Bowser spit a fireball of his own toward Magivi, who used his magic barrier to protect himself again.

  
  


“As long as he has that barrier up, none of our attacks can get through!” Peach worried.

  
  


Rosalina thought out loud, “If we can just get him to bring his shield back up...”

  
  


“I got this one, Rosalina! Be ready for me!” Daisy yelled as she charged right at the villain.

  
  


“Is this really your master plan? Throwing yourselves at me until you tire out?” Magivi asked as he put his shield up again.

  
  


“Now!” Rosalina shouted as she launched a magical projectile toward Magivi.

  
  


The projectile hit Magivi's shield, causing it to disappear just before Daisy jumped into the air, and landed a kick right into him. Stunned, he fell to the ground.

  
  


“Great job, Daisy!” Rosalina cheered.

  
  


“Thanks for the assist, Rosalina!”

  
  


Magivi picked himself up, and attempted to put his shield back, but nothing happened when he waved his wand. To his dismay, Rosalina's attack had disabled his ability to use his shield.

  
  


“Never mind.” he said, “If I can't use a magic shield, I'll just have to use something else!”

  
  


Magivi reached into his robe and pulled out the tablet and keys he had stolen. Using his wand, he levitated the tablet in front of him to use as a shield. He then took the keys, and fired them at Bowser. All four keys landed a direct hit, causing him to fall back onto his shell.

  
  


“Someone help me up, will you?!” he shouted, struggling to get himself back up.

  
  


Peach ran over to help Bowser. Magivi noticed this and fired the keys again at her. Mario and Luigi jumped in front of Peach, and used their hammers to knock the keys out of the air. Before Magivi could pull them back, Rosalina pointed her wand at the keys and took them for herself.

  
  


“Rosalina, quick! Give him a taste of his own medicine!” Daisy shouted.

  
  


Rosalina levitated and fired the keys toward Magivi, who blocked the attack with the stone tablet. The keys dropped to the ground, and the stone tablet crumbled from the force of the attack. Meanwhile, Peach, Mario, and Luigi had successfully managed to push Bowser back over.

  
  


Bowser laughed, “Can't believe I'm saying this to you guys, but thanks. Now let's get back to work!”

  
  


Magivi waved his wand until he finally got his barrier to appear again.

  
  


“I'll be needing those, boys!” he taunted as he used his magic to pull Mario and Luigi's hammers from their hands.

  
  


Magivi then repeatedly threw the hammers at Peach and Daisy, who had to dodge out of the way of each attack. Rosalina flew to them, and put up a magic barrier to protect them.

  
  


“Mario! Luigi!” she called, “Find a way to get him to drop those hammers!”

  
  


Mario and Luigi took turns jumping at Magivi, but his barrier prevented them from being able to hurt him.

  
  


“Ha! As long as I've got Rosalina distracted, they can't get through my barrier!” he laughed.

  
  


“Distract this, you hooded freak!” Bowser shouted as he jumped from one of the pillars of the altar.

  
  


Bowser dive bombed directly into Magivi. Despite his shield still being up, the force of the impact drove him directly into the ground. The hammers fell to the ground, and Peach and Daisy ran to grab them. With Magivi's shield now down, the girls attacked Magivi relentlessly with the hammers.

  
  


“Ouch! Stop that, you little pests!” he shouted.

  
  


Magivi became enraged, and released a shockwave, pushing everyone back.

  
  


“I won't be defeated by the likes of you!”

  
  


He then launched a fireball at one of the pillars, causing it to crumble. He then used the debris as projectiles, launching all of them toward Mario's team at once in a massive onslaught of stones. Rosalina projected a magic barrier around everyone near her, but Peach and Bowser were still caught out. Peach cowered in fear, but found that she was unharmed as Bowser jumped in front of her to absorb the impact of the attack. Exhausted from taking the full force of the hit, Bowser fell to the ground.

  
  


“Bowser!” Peach shouted, “He saved me again?”

  
  


Mario shrugged, “I don't get him sometimes, but we'll worry about him when the fight's over!”

  
  


“Let's end it!” Luigi shouted, “You ready, Mario?”

  
  


Mario and Luigi ran up to Magivi, grabbing their hammers from Peach and Daisy along the way.

  
  


“Fools! Did you forget from last time?” Magivi laughed as he protected himself with his barrier again.

  
  


“It seems you forgot as well!” Rosalina shouted as she fired another projectile toward Magivi.

  
  


Magivi's shield disappeared again just as Mario and Luigi timed a coordinated hit right into Magivi. The impact of the fall knocked his wand from his hand. He could barely pick himself up, and attempted to crawl to his wand. He was stopped when Rosalina stood in front of him. She lifted him up into the air, and looked him dead in the eyes.

  
  


“This is for the Star Mages, you monster!” she shouted as she suspended him high in the air.

  
  


Mario and Luigi jumped from one of the pillars, landing another double hit with their hammers.

  
  


“No!” Magivi screamed as he plummeted to the ground.

  
  


Mario's team ran over to check on Bowser.

  
  


“Bowser? Bowser are you alright?” Mario asked.

  
  


Bowser opened his eyes, “Did we win?”

  
  


“We did it.” Luigi sighed, relieved, “We finally stopped Magivi.”

  
  


“Now that that adventure is over, we should get going before Bowser decides to steal that artifact in there.” Daisy said.

  
  


“Daisy!” Everyone shouted at once.

  
  


Bowser laughed, “You think I'm crazy enough to go for that thing? Knowing how these ancient artifacts of doom tend to work, that thing would probably kill me if I tried to use it! You'd have to be a complete moron to try to chase after something like that!”

  
  


Suddenly, another mushroom starship crashed into the altar, and Wario and Waluigi climbed out.

  
  


“You again?!” Daisy asked, “Don't you have anything better to do?”

  
  


“You think you could get rid of us that easily?” Waluigi laughed.

  
  


“Hey, thanks for doing all the dirty work for me, chumps!” Wario said sarcastically.

  
  


Wario made his way to the magic barrier, stepping over Magivi, and grabbing the keys on his way. Everyone else was completely frozen in disbelief as they watched.

  
  


“This is just too perfect! I'm gonna be rich!”

  
  


Before Wario could unlock the last lock, he was pulled away by Waluigi.

  
  


“Oh no you don't! I'm sick of following you around and being your sidekick!”

  
  


“Waluigi I told you that I'll give you a cut of the money! Now back off and let me open this thing!”

  
  


Wario and Waluigi continued to bicker while everyone watched. Magivi opened his eyes, and saw what was going on. He crawled over to the gate, and unlocked the final lock. Behind the magical barrier, he saw a glowing crystal suspended over a pedestal. Everyone was blinded by a flash of light, and then they saw Magivi hovering above them, his eyes shining brightly. His robe had changed from its original maroon to a bright gold, and his hair seemed to flow in a breeze that didn't exist.

  
  


“No!” Peach shouted.

  
  


Magivi laughed, “You thought you could defeat me?! Fools! Witness my ultimate power!”

  
  


“We all need to fight him together!” Rosalina shouted, “We have no other choice!”

  
  


“This is the loser that's been trying to take away my cash cow? I'll gladly throw a few punches his way!” Wario laughed.

  
  


“I didn't come all this way to lose my chance now!” Waluigi added, “Bring it on, magic boy!”

  
  


Magivi projected a set of magic barriers around himself, protecting him from all sides. Rosalina responded by launching another projectile to destroy the shields, but the projectile was simply absorbed by the shields with no effect.

  
  


“What the-?” Rosalina gasped in disbelief, “He's more powerful than I thought.”

  
  


“Can't use that move anymore, girl!” Magivi taunted.

  
  


Magivi then launched fire from his hands. Mario's team split up and ducked behind the pillars and the crashed starship.

  
  


“I hope you have a plan that's better than hiding!” Wario told Rosalina, who had ducked behind the same pillar him and Waluigi.

  
  


Rosalina peeked out from cover, and quickly ducked back when Magivi directed the flames toward her.

  
  


“There's a gap in his shields that he's launching the fire through.” she thought, “If we could throw something in there, we could hit him!”

  
  


Waluigi pulled out a bomb, “Would this work?”

  
  


“I hope you can aim well!” Wario said as he picked up Waluigi.

  
  


Wario threw Waluigi through the air, where he then threw the bomb at Magivi. The bomb went right into the gap in the shield, and exploded inside. Magivi was completely undeterred by the explosion, but one of the shields had been destroyed from absorbing the full force of the explosion.

  
  


“He didn't even budge!” Peach cried, “Did he even feel a thing?”

  
  


Magivi launched shockwaves at the stone pillars everyone was hiding behind, causing them to crumble. He then formed the debris into a shell around his shields, completely encasing himself in a ball. He started rolling around the battlefield, with everyone running to stay away from him.

  
  


“Rosalina!” Mario called, “I have a plan! Wait for my signal!”

  
  


Mario took his hammer, and waited for Magivi to roll to him. Right before Magivi could hit him, Mario swung at the shell, causing part of it to fall off.

  
  


“Now it's your turn, Rosalina!”

  
  


Rosalina flew into the path of Magivi, and spun around, releasing a wave of magical energy that hit directly into the gap of the shell, causing the rest of it to fall apart. With his shell destroyed, Magivi flew back into the air.

  
  


“Let's see if you can handle this!” he shouted as he began launching a series of shockwaves at the ground.

  
  


The tremors caused by Magivi's attacks knocked everyone to their feet, except for Rosalina, who was floating in the air. Looking for a chance to attack, she used her wand to lift Bowser into the air.

  
  


“What are you doing?! Put me down!” he roared.

  
  


Bowser looked down, and saw Magivi directly under him.

  
  


Bowser grinned, “Never mind, keep going!”

  
  


Rosalina released him from above, dropping him directly onto Magivi. Bowser dive bombed Magivi again, dropping him to the ground. In a panic, Magivi fired another shockwave, but since he was on the ground as well, the shockwave hit him as well. Its force broke another one of his shields.

  
  


“That's it!” Magivi shouted as he rose back into the air, “You don't know what you face! Just try and survive this.”

  
  


Magivi started charging up energy for a powerful attack. Rosalina put up a magic barrier between herself and Magivi.

  
  


“Everyone get behind me!” she shouted.

  
  


Everyone hurried to get behind Rosalina's shield as Magivi unleashed a laser toward her. The barrier was strong enough to stop it, but Rosalina was struggling to keep it up.

  
  


“It won't hold for much longer!”

  
  


Just as Rosalina's shield broke, the laser finished with a powerful explosion, knocking everyone back. Everyone managed to get up, except for Waluigi. Wario saw his partner-in-crime laying on the ground, and rushed to his side.

  
  


“Waluigi get up right now! This isn't funny!” he shouted.

  
  


When Waluigi remained unresponsive, Wario turned to Magivi with a great fury in his eyes. He climbed up one of the pillars, and jumped onto Magivi's shield, relentlessly punching it in a fit of rage.

  
  


“You'll pay for what you did to Waluigi!” he shouted.

  
  


“I didn't think he'd ever show emotion for someone else.” Daisy said as she watched.

  
  


Through his series of attacks, Wario managed to destroy the final shield protecting Magivi. Exhausted, he fell to the ground.

  
  


“So you took out those barriers?” Magivi chuckled, “No worries, I can get those right back up.”

  
  


Magivi waved his hand to restore the barriers, but nothing happened. He waved his hand again, and again, but no barriers appeared around him.

  
  


“What's going on? Where is my power?!”

  
  


“Why can't he make more shields?” Peach wondered.

  
  


“The Ascension Catalyst is powerful, but it seems its power is not as infinite as we thought.” Rosalina thought, “He likely depleted his energy with that laser, and cannot use his shields now.”

  
  


“Sounds like the perfect opportunity to take this guy down!” Bowser replied, “Everyone move in!”

  
  


Magivi saw that Mario's team was quickly approaching him, and fired another laser. Rosalina flew ahead of everyone to block it with another barrier. The laser was much less powerful than the one before, and was easily absorbed by the shield.

  
  


“Rosalina, give me another boost!” Bowser said.

  
  


Rosalina launched Bowser into the air again. He grabbed Magivi out of the air, and dropped him into the ground. Magivi used his magic to push Bowser away.

  
  


“I will not be defeated with this power, you brute!”

  
  


Magivi wildly launched fireballs and stones at Mario's team. Mario and Luigi hit the stones out of the air while Bowser protected them from the fire. While he was attacking Mario and Luigi, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Peach standing behind him.

  
  


“Remember me?” she asked as she punched him toward Daisy.

  
  


Daisy then kicked Magivi away. He recovered, and launched a series of shockwaves at the ground, knocking everyone down while he got back into the air. In an act of desperation he fired lasers around him in a wild and inaccurate manner. His attacks started to slow down, and when he had completely exhausted all of his power, and fell to the ground.

  
  


“I will... have my revenge...” he grumbled, “I still hold the power... I will regain my strength... In time, you will see...”

  
  


Suddenly, Magivi's body glowed very brightly, and he disappeared into a cloud of stardust, leaving only the Ascension Catalyst on the ground, which then shattered into pieces.

  
  


“Consumed by the power he sought to obtain.” Rosalina said, “It's a shame, he could have been a great Star Mage.”

  
  


“So it's finally over?” Daisy asked, “We finally won?”

  
  


“We did it!” Luigi cheered.

  
  


“You know, I told you guys something like that would happen. I'm glad that wasn't me that tried to go for it.” Bowser said.

  
  


Mario's team let out a cheer of victory. Wario woke up to see everyone celebrating.

  
  


“What's the party about? Did we- Oh no!”

  
  


Wario saw the Ascension Catalyst in pieces on the ground, and ran over to them.

  
  


“This is terrible! How am I gonna sell this thing now?!”

  
  


“You were driven by greed, and look where that got you and your friend.” Rosalina reprimanded, pointing to Waluigi.

  
  


“Waluigi! I forgot!”

  
  


Wario ran over to Waluigi, who was still lying on the ground.

  
  


“I'm sorry Waluigi!” Wario cried, “I promise to never be greedy ever again!”

  
  


Waluigi opened his eyes, and saw Wario in tears next to him.

  
  


“What's going on? Am I missing something?” he asked.

  
  


“Waluigi! Don't you ever scare me like that again! Now come on, we gotta find some other money making scheme now that you ruined this one.”

  
  


“Some people never change.” Peach sighed.

  
  


“I suppose there's no point in staying here anymore.” Rosalina said, “Come on, I'll take everyone home.”

  
  


Everyone boarded the Comet Observatory to return home after their victory. Rosalina however, stopped for a moment to look back at the altar where they fought, and where Magivi had fallen. Daisy noticed this, and went to talk with her.

  
  


“Hey Rosalina. Is something the matter?”

  
  


“I was just thinking. Was it right to try to avenge the Star Mages that Magivi killed, or is revenge just a petty goal no matter what you do?”

  
  


“The way I see it, it depends on the situation. You fought to avenge the deaths of those Star Mages, but Magivi was trying to get back at people he was angry with.”

  
  


“You're probably right. I hope that wherever among the stars my friends found themselves, they know what we did, and are proud of it.”

  
  


“Let's get going now, I heard Peach was planning a celebration!”

  
  


“Sounds like a plan. Let's go.”

  
  


Rosalina piloted the Comet Observatory into the stars, carrying the exhausted heroes on a journey back home, finally ready to celebrate their victory.


End file.
